New ‘Superdiffusion’ Proof Probes the Mysterious Math of Turbulence
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Summary
Mathematicians have struggled to explain the behavior of turbulent fluids, which swirl with eddies and whirlpools at all sizes, from bathtub drains to tornadoes.
Scott Armstrong wanted to use a mathematical technique to prove a conjecture about how particles behave in turbulent fluids.
After two years and 300 pages of calculations, he and his collaborators proved that fluid particles exhibit a phenomenon called superdiffusion: They spread out more quickly than expected.
Armstrong hopes that this technique will prove useful in a range of other problems in turbulence and other areas of mathematics.
“I feel like there are so many open possibilities at the moment,” said one of his collaborators. “I think that this is the last time this will happen to me in my life, and right now I’m going to enjoy the ride.
