Team Cracks Decades-Old Math Puzzle

[jjones]

Originally posted by: Goosemaster

The calculation does not have any obvious practical applications but could help advance theoretical physics and geometry, researchers said.

shrug...

Yeah, before I even got to that line in the article, I was wondering if there was any point in using all of the resources to achieve the solution. I guess not. Hope it was privately funded.

 

[Aharami]

ah scholars. spending years to solve the problems that has no relevance

 

[brandonbull]

Originally posted by: Aharami
ah scholars. spending years to solve the problems that has no relevance

Sometimes it's not where you're going but how you get there.

 

[AMCRambler]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend
Team Cracks Decades-Old Math Puzzle
By Associated Press
2 hours ago


In a computer generated illustration supplied by the American ...
PALO ALTO, Calif. - An international team of mathematicians has cracked a 120-year-old puzzle that researchers say is so complicated that its handwritten solution would cover the island of Manhattan.

The 18-member group of mathematicians and computer scientists was convened by the American Institute of Mathematics in Palo Alto to map a theoretical object known as the "Lie group E8."

Lie (pronounced Lee) groups were invented by 19th-century Norwegian mathematician Sophus Lie in his study of symmetrical objects, especially spheres, and differential calculus.

The E8 group, which dates to 1887, is the most complicated Lie group, with 248 dimensions, and was long considered impossible to solve.

"To say what precisely it is is something even many mathematicians can't understand," said Jeffrey Adams, the project's leader and a math professor at the University of Maryland.

The problem's proof, announced Monday at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, took the researchers four years to find. It involves about 60 times as much data as the Human Genome Project.

When stored in highly compressed form on a computer hard drive, the solution takes up as much space as 45 days of continuous music in MP3 format.

"It's like a Mount Everest of mathematical structures they've climbed now," said Brian Conrey, director of the institute.

The calculation does not have any obvious practical applications but could help advance theoretical physics and geometry, researchers said.


LINK

Well woopty doo. They filled up a 70gb hard drive. That's just not impressive.

 

[dainthomas]

Originally posted by: AMCRambler

Well woopty doo. They filled up a 70gb hard drive. That's just not impressive.

70GB is impressive if a good percentage of it is text. Especially considering it's 70gb compressed.

 

[rivan]

Originally posted by: Yossarian
and then they went on to fvck Minnie Driver

:laugh:
Bwahaha.

 

[Born2bwire]

Originally posted by: StormRider

Originally posted by: Random Variable
Last summer they offered a class on lie algebra at my school. From what I've been told, nobody understood what the heck the teacher was talking about.

Wow. This is in high school? I think lie algebra usually a graduate level subject. I've heard the term but I don't remember studying about it so I guess I never got to that level in college.

RV is a grad student last I checked.


Poor bastard.

 

[mugs]

"When stored in highly compressed form on a computer hard drive, the solution takes up as much space as 45 days of continuous music in MP3 format."

We're measuring data size in MP3-days now? What bitrate? Isn't GB a more useful unit of measurement?

 

[SacrosanctFiend]

Wow...what a complete waste of time.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

I made something that looks like that in kindergarten with a $5 spiralgraph toy.
Whoop-dee-fookin-dooo.
Now try spending the time and resources to do this to work on getting cold fusion working.

 

[Flyback]

I find it disturbing that people find knowledge that isn't immediately useful to be a "waste of time" and efforts.

 

[CityShrimp]

Originally posted by: mugs
"When stored in highly compressed form on a computer hard drive, the solution takes up as much space as 45 days of continuous music in MP3 format."

We're measuring data size in MP3-days now? What bitrate? Isn't GB a more useful unit of measurement?

Kinda reminds me of how people answer "how far" questions with measurements of time....

 

[SacrosanctFiend]

Originally posted by: Flyback
I find it disturbing that people find knowledge that isn't immediately useful to be a "waste of time" and efforts.

It is a waste of time when there are many more pressing endeavors that need attention.

 

[TuxDave]

Originally posted by: SacrosanctFiend

Originally posted by: Flyback
I find it disturbing that people find knowledge that isn't immediately useful to be a "waste of time" and efforts.

It is a waste of time when there are many more pressing endeavors that need attention.

And what should they be doing instead?

 

[DaShen]

What people will do to find a topic for a thesis and get a PHD. LOL

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
I made something that looks like that in kindergarten with a $5 spiralgraph toy.
Whoop-dee-fookin-dooo.
Now try spending the time and resources to do this to work on getting cold fusion working.

What if solving this equation helps them bring about cold fusion?

 

[JEDI]

interesting... search kinda works again.

i searched for "beowulf" and got this thread.

btw:
9 month retention rates for threads now?

as for 248 dimension theory.

pfft... who cares? i mastered the 4th dimension (time) w/my flux capacitor. 5th to 248th is all bells+whistles

 

[BoomerD]

Just trying to figure out why A+B=C gives me nightmares...

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: Aharami
ah scholars. spending years to solve the problems that has no relevance

Lasers had no practical application when they were first invented. Tell you what, why don't I go over to your house, job, and regional hospital and destroy everything that uses lasers?

Originally posted by: SacrosanctFiend
<blockquote>quote:
Originally posted by: Flyback
I find it disturbing that people find knowledge that isn't immediately useful to be a "waste of time" and efforts.</blockquote>

It is a waste of time when there are many more pressing endeavors that need attention.

Yeah, it's too bad that all those people who put R & D into developing the MRI machine hadn't just worked at a soup kitchen instead. Think of how much more they could have done for humanity!

It's like you guys don't understand the entire basis for the modern age!

 

[RossGr]

Sheesh!
Has no one in this thread heard of Garret Lisi? The sufer physicsts.

here is AT link to a disscussion of his work.

There is a huge possibility that this very E(8) algebra may be the basis for a "periodic table" of the subatomic particles and forces. If that is the case this may be the most significant break through in Physics since Maxwell or Einstein.

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: CityShrimp
<blockquote>quote:
Originally posted by: mugs
"When stored in highly compressed form on a computer hard drive, the solution takes up as much space as 45 days of continuous music in MP3 format."

We're measuring data size in MP3-days now? What bitrate? Isn't GB a more useful unit of measurement? </blockquote>

Kinda reminds me of how people answer "how far" questions with measurements of time....

thats is actually usefull tho

something may only be 5 miles away but takes 30 min to get there

 

[BoomerD]

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: CityShrimp
<blockquote>quote:
Originally posted by: mugs
"When stored in highly compressed form on a computer hard drive, the solution takes up as much space as 45 days of continuous music in MP3 format."

We're measuring data size in MP3-days now? What bitrate? Isn't GB a more useful unit of measurement? </blockquote>

Kinda reminds me of how people answer "how far" questions with measurements of time....

thats is actually usefull tho

something may only be 5 miles away but takes 30 min to get there

I've worked with guys who answer the question, "How far from the job do you live?" with answers like "About a 12 pack", "About a six pack"...

 

[DangerAardvark]

Originally posted by: Shawn
<blockquote>quote:
Originally posted by: pray4mojo
still no cure for cancer.</blockquote>

Exactly. What a waste of time!

Yes. Get our mathematicians working on the cure for cancer immediately. And while we're at it, let's get NASA cracking on securing our borders.

 

[andylawcc]

Originally posted by: JEDI
interesting... search kinda works again.

i searched for "beowulf" and got this thread.

lol

 

[IAteYourMother]

What you people don't understand is that many "theoretical" problems become practical in the future.