What 'blowup' actually means: your coffee cup is a $1M math problem

burny_tech · x · 2026-09-08

Clearing up the misconception that "blowup" means an explosion, @sksq96 explains it means the solution's velocity going to infinity somewhere. Analogy: stir your coffee — each smaller swirl spins faster. The open question is whether that acceleration can continue until speed becomes infinite somewhere in the cup while you're still stirring. Nobody knows, and $1 million — the Clay Millennium Prize for Navier–Stokes — sits on the answer.

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