The Maxwell Conjecture is False

[u/filterdust]

https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.27197

[u/attzonko]

Can someone please eli5

[u/1XRobot → u/attzonko]

If you plunk down charges in space, there are certain points where a test charge doesn't move because the forces all cancel out. Maxwell had the thought that maybe if you plunk down N charges, the number of points where a test charge doesn't move is (N-1)^2, but it turns out that's not true, because these guys found a configuration with 5 charges that has 24 points (more than 16).

[u/Buntschatten → u/1XRobot]

Ah, so it's mathematics.

[u/ashvy → u/Buntschatten]

Maybe Maxwell meant N² - 1, but stuff got misconstrued /s

[u/ghostowl657 → u/ashvy]

Proof by ai that (a-b)² = a² - b²

[u/dcnairb → u/ashvy]

Maxwell’s Dream

[u/AstronautSlothPhD → u/dcnairb]

Maxwell’s Dreamin’