April 26th, 2025

Mathematicians just solved a 125-year-old problem, uniting 3 theories in physics

Mathematicians have unified three fluid dynamics theories, providing a rigorous basis for existing models. This breakthrough enhances confidence in fluid behavior equations and may advance the mathematical foundations of physics.

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Mathematicians just solved a 125-year-old problem, uniting 3 theories in physics

Mathematicians have made significant progress on Hilbert's sixth problem, which aims to unify various physical theories through a mathematical framework. This breakthrough, reported by researchers Yu Deng, Zaher Hani, and Xiao Ma, involves the unification of three theories that describe fluid motion: the Boltzmann equation at the microscopic level, and the Euler and Navier-Stokes equations at the macroscopic level. The researchers' work provides a rigorous mathematical justification for these theories, which have applications in engineering and weather prediction. Their approach consists of deriving the macroscopic theory from the mesoscopic one, and vice versa, ultimately linking them through a comprehensive derivation. This achievement not only strengthens the confidence in existing fluid dynamics theories but also represents a step forward in Hilbert's vision of axiomatizing physics. If validated, this work could pave the way for further advancements in understanding the mathematical foundations of physics.

- Researchers have unified three theories of fluid dynamics, marking progress on Hilbert's sixth problem.

- The work provides a rigorous mathematical basis for existing fluid motion theories used in engineering and meteorology.

- The unification involves deriving macroscopic theories from mesoscopic ones and linking them through a comprehensive derivation.

- This breakthrough could enhance confidence in the equations governing fluid behavior and inspire further research in physics.

- The findings may lead to new insights into the mathematical foundations of various physical theories.

Link Icon 4 comments
By @jug - 27 minutes
There’s a Reddit thread that provides useful context to this, what it is and the scope: https://www.reddit.com/r/math/s/OD0Jy9Rdns
By @dako2117 - about 5 hours
By @paulpauper - about 4 hours
It's interesting how so many important papers are always on arxiv first. it makes me wonder what purpose peer reviews serves. I think also, this is to help establish priority over the result. So getting it up on arxiv is like a timestamp to avoid someone else deriving it at the same time and getting credit by having it published first.
By @SpaceManNabs - about 4 hours
The article does a wonderful job in providing context for the proof.

I really enjoyed the clear descriptions of the three scales.