News Math

AI may have solved one of math’s biggest puzzles, raising controversy

OpenAI found a breakdown in the Navier-Stokes equations, which describe how fluids flow

Trails of blue and orange spiral around a central line.

A vortex that speeds up and elongates as it spirals inward (illustrated) shows that the Navier-Stokes equations governing the motion of fluids can break down. Slower speeds are indicated in blue and faster speeds are indicated in orange.

OpenAI

By Emily Conover

The motion of fluids seems simple, but the equations behind it are the subject of one of the most famous puzzles in mathematics.