@aviationdoctor.eth

Big if true — a team of mathematicians has generalized the derivation of the Navier-Stokes equation from the Boltzmann equation, and of the Navier-Stokes equation from Newton’s equations. Essentially deriving the macroscopic behavior of atoms from the mesoscopic and then the microscopic scales. This would be a big step forward in axiomatizing physics (i.e., modeling the whole of physics from fewer first-principle rules). This was one of Hilbert’s “sixth problem” on his list of 23 problems delivered to the International Congress in 1900. Lay article: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/lofty-math-problem-called-hilberts-sixth-closer-to-being-solved/ Pre-print: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2503.01800

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