Sometimes even the most terrible disasters have serendipitous consequences. Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812 for instance have been said to be a worthwhile "investment" just because of a single chart that was drawn 57 years after. This chart have been said to be a triumph that even the great French general (who was an amateur mathematician himself) would approve of.

As they say, when life gives you lemons...

If you have a sibling, you can probably note down some differences between yourselves, one of you have your father's eyes, while the other have you mother's. If you then compare yourself with your first cousins, the differences maybe more pronounced.

Now, how far do we have to go back the family tree to be completely unrecognizable? And how did this came about?

In our daily lives, there are two things that we can tell: random event, and those due to cause and effect. However some supposedly random things are simply organized in such a way that we can't help by recognising a cause to their non-coincidental effect.

We see it in nature (the Golden Ratio), and constructs by humans (the movement of share prices). But what about in pure numbers? Especially the most mysterious kind: prime numbers.

Steel seems to occupy a special place and purpose in our civilisation. Even though other materials exist, both metallic and non-metallic, they're not as utilised as much as steel. What special properties does it have that these others don't? Certainly there are other materials that are stronger, lighter, less prone to corrosion, or just plain less costly to make.

Or maybe steel is just the jack-of-all-trades that has all those properties in balance?

Population genetics is the branch of genetics which studies the genetic composition of populations. It brings together genetics, evolution, natural selection, breeding, statistics and mathematics. It's one of those rare crossroads of multiple disciplines that gives a wider perspective to ourselves and nature.

It doesn't just answer the question of what we are, but also why we are as we are.