Viral square packing debate: "ugly" corners may hint at deeper structure, author argues
ctjlewis · x · 2026-10-08
- The n=11 square packing solution's "unexpected corners" went viral among millions of non-mathematicians
- Critics called the solution/question "ugly"; author ojoshe argues the unexpected is a signal — per von Neumann, things that don't make sense reflect poorly tuned intuitions and may point at something far bigger
- QiaochuYuan counters it's a case of "ask ugly questions, get ugly answers": square packing isn't a particularly natural problem
More from Fun
- 80% of My Net Worth Is Digital Cash GPT 6.7 Could Trace in Real Time — menhguin · 2026-10-08
- 'Money Is All You Need': the OpenAI paper parody meme going around — shauseth · 2026-10-08
- ChatGPT builds an interactive piano in-chat via new GenUI feature — flowersslop · 2026-10-08
- repligate: People Who Gained Real Power From Posting Are All Extraordinarily Capable — repligate · 2026-10-08
- Dropping out of CS on November 30, 2022 — the day ChatGPT launched — haydendevs · 2026-10-08
- Gemini Omni turns a noble dad joke into a classical oil painting animation — carinkemo · 2026-10-08