Reposted by Max BrodeurFlavio Martinelli @flavioh.bsky.social · 10/06/2026NEW PAPER. Why do larger networks train better? "Because they contain more candidate *sub*networks that can learn the task" → lottery tickets This popular explanation uses an appealing but misleading metaphor🧵 We propose an intuitive alternative grounded in theory: escape dimensions 519952
Reposted by Max BrodeurSimone (she/her) @simonerencken.bsky.social · 31/05/2026I’m happy to share that our paper about the Sepia officinalis genome is out in eLife!🧬 We compared the assemblies of two individuals that had a different predicted number of chromosomes, and found highly repetitive regions that likely prevented a complete assembly. elifesciences.org/articles/107... 02210
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 11/02/2026Strange attractor in 1000D space of the activity in a random recurrent network — viewed from the first 20 principal components (in pairs). #mathart #neuroscience 041
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 27/10/2025Any interpretation for what’s at the root vs. leaves? 000
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 18/10/2025perturbations along a single coefficient of a random quadratic 2D polynomial map ~50 million points per frame — rendered in C++ sound: mystery or misery? — vegyn 011
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 04/08/2025Right! There’s something comforting in accepting that it’s just looks nice — even if it might be a wild goose chase :) There’s more evidence for that perspective: x.com/hippopedoid/...x.com 110
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 04/08/2025Check out johnhw’s notes! They plot where things like factors and sequences show up, and compute number-theoretic stats. The (pink) image is colored by integer magnitude (bright = large). Some trajectories hint at sequences, but no formal classification was made. johnhw.github.io/umap_primes/...johnhw.github.io 110
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 04/08/2025Euclid’s Elements is the second-most printed and studied book in history — after the Bible. Written around 300 BC in ancient Greece, this edition is its first English translation (1570). It remained a core math textbook well into the 20th century. 011
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 04/08/2025Euclid, Newton & Turing This weekend, at the John Rylands Library in Manchester, I finally found a historical copy of Euclid’s Elements. And right next to it: Newton’s Principia and Turing’s handwritten notes. Completely overwhelming. 130
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 31/07/2025Our paper, videos, and 3D models are available here: go.epfl.ch/smooth_rolling_knotsgo.epfl.chSmooth-Rolling KnotsOur optimized knots (bottom) roll smoothly, i.e., their centre of mass is always at the same distance from the rolling plane. We generate smooth rolling torus knots with increasing topological complex... 041
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 31/07/2025And they work in real life too :) Smooth-rolling objects require virtually no force to start moving – even with low friction, they roll. 150
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 31/07/2025An object is “smooth-rolling” if its center of mass remains at a constant height while it rolls. We created knots with this property by combining Morton’s knots with Two-Disk Rollers. 240
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 31/07/2025Smooth-rolling knots! At @markpauly.bsky.social’s lab, we found a way to optimize knots for smooth rolling. I presented our work at Bridges 2025 – the conference for #MathArt. More below ↓ 2314
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 29/07/2025Thank you Keenan — really means a lot! Your Repulsive Curves are actually what got me working on knots in the first place. :) 130
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 29/07/2025Each number becomes a binary vector representing its prime divisors: 1 → [0, 0, 0, …] 2 → [1, 0, 0, …] 3 → [0, 1, 0, …] 6 (2×3) → [1, 1, 0, …] 30 (2×3×5) → [1, 1, 1, 0, …] Each bit = “is divisible by the n-th prime?” 011
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 29/07/2025Here are the first 8 million integers, rendered by John Healy. johnhw.github.io/umap_primes/... 221
Max Brodeur @maxbrodeur.bsky.social · 29/07/2025What is the hidden structure of the natural numbers? In the UMAP paper, @lelandmcinnes.bsky.social et al. embedded the integers as binary vectors of their prime factors. This UMAP visualization of 30 million integers reveals a fractal-like geometry. #UMAP #mathart #dataviz #numbertheory 282