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How Did We Get Here? The Tangled History of the Second Law of Thermodynamics

Stephen Wolfram

But by the end of the 1800s, with the existence of molecules increasingly firmly established, the Second Law began to often be treated as an almost-mathematically-proven necessary law of physics. There were still mathematical loose ends, as well as issues such as its application to living systems and to systems involving gravity.

Energy 88
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Even beyond Physics: Introducing Multicomputation as a Fourth General Paradigm for Theoretical Science

Stephen Wolfram

Many would say that modern exact science was launched in the 1600s with the introduction of what we can call the “ mathematical paradigm ”: the idea that things in the world can be described by mathematical equations—and that their behavior can be determined by finding solutions to these equations.

Physics 65
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Multicomputation: A Fourth Paradigm for Theoretical Science

Stephen Wolfram

Many would say that modern exact science was launched in the 1600s with the introduction of what we can call the “ mathematical paradigm ”: the idea that things in the world can be described by mathematical equations—and that their behavior can be determined by finding solutions to these equations.

Science 64
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LLM Tech and a Lot More: Version 13.3 of Wolfram Language and Mathematica

Stephen Wolfram

Line, Surface and Contour Integration “Find the integral of the function ” is a typical core thing one wants to do in calculus. But particularly in applications of calculus, it’s common to want to ask slightly more elaborate questions, like “What’s the integral of over the region ?”, or “What’s the integral of along the line ?”

Computer 118
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Remembering the Improbable Life of Ed Fredkin (1934–2023) and His World of Ideas and Stories

Stephen Wolfram

It didn’t help that his knowledge of physics was at best spotty (and, for example, I don’t think he ever really learned calculus). It explains that III has four divisions: Mathematical and Programming Services, Behavioral Science, Operations, and “New York”. It says that “From a one-man operation [in 1962], I.I.I.

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The Concept of the Ruliad

Stephen Wolfram

And—it should be said at the outset—we’re still only at the very beginning of nailing down those technical details and setting up the difficult mathematics and formalism they involve.) Mathematically this can be thought of as being like decomposing the ruliad structure in terms of fibrations and foliations.). The View from Mathematics.

Physics 122
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Computational Foundations for the Second Law of Thermodynamics

Stephen Wolfram

Sometimes textbooks will gloss over everything; sometimes they’ll give some kind of “common-sense-but-outside-of-physics argument”. How does one tie all this down with rigorous, mathematical-style proofs? But one never quite gets there ; it always seems to need something extra. But the mystery of the Second Law has never gone away.