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Matt Macauley

@visualalgebra.bsky.social
1.4K followers 706 following 1.1K posts

Associate Professor (Clemson) | AIMS Lecturer (South Africa) | Author: "Visual Algebra" (forthcoming) | YouTuber | First Gen | Homesteader | Dad to Ida & Felix | 🔱

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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 19h
S_4?
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
You sound like quite the snarklepony
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
It’s astounding to me that ANYONE would ever pay for this. Like seriously, has anyone ever actually bought this in human history? If I want to email someone a preprint, I’ll make my own pdf, or post to the arXiv.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Calvin’s dad: “Sure! Cyclists have a right to the road too, you noisy, polluting, inconsiderate maniacs! I hope gas goes up to eight bucks a gallon!”
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Curious passage: “We must, absolutely, insist on a higher standard for scientific discourse. The aim must be to communicate, clearly, with people in the community --- certainly this is an historical requirement for publication.” Historical requirement? I can think of sooooo many counterexamples…
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
Steven Strogatz @stevenstrogatz.com · 23/09/2026
www.nytimes.com/2026/09/22/s...
nytimes.com
Mathematics Isn’t Just a Game to Let A.I. Solve. History Shows Why. (Gift Article)
In our field of applied mathematics, the long, human process of trial and error — not just the solutions themselves — is often what has led to progress.
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
ꭓle Ormsby 𓆙 @e-infinity.space · 22/09/2026
Chaim is bringing the fire 🔥
Abstract
We provide a clearer presentation of the Chair44 monotile, a new strongly aperiodic
monotile in three-dimensional Euclidean space E3
.
With LLM tools (ChatGPT Astra), Ioannis Tsiokos recently reported the first
known strongly aperiodic monotile in three-dimensional Euclidean space E
3
, the Chair44
monotile (see Figure 3, taken from Tsiokos’ preprint [11]). Hats off to Tsiokos for this
discovery, the framework he developed, and the human inquiry that led to the Chair44
monotile.
However, the paper itself and the formalization that it claims for support are not
in a form that is readily usable to anyone who wants to understand or check it. This is
not just because of the needless length or complexity of the argument (which is indeed
overwhelming as presented), or because the formal repository is not in normal form, or
because much of the text is misleading or poorly organized, but mainly because there
is so much irrelevant puff to push through. These are hallmarks of an LLM-driven
research paper.
We must, absolutely, insist on a higher standard for scientific discourse. The aim
must be to communicate, clearly, with people in the community — certainly this is an
historical requirement for publication.1
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
That might just be the best opening page of a paper that I’ve ever read!
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
No, he’s definitely white South African, just not Afrikaans. (Common misconception to conflate the two.) White South Africans of British descent speak English at home. Afrikaners grow up speaking Afrikaans. (I know many of the former that don’t even know Afrikaans.)
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Yes to the first part. But Musk is not an Afrikaner.
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
Thomas Lin @7homaslin.com · 18/09/2026
For anyone wondering what Navier-Stokes is all about and what the recent proof did and didn’t do, watch @QuantaMagazine’s excellent new explainer video: youtu.be/PsWR1rQEWYo
youtu.be
Why Navier-Stokes Pushes Math and Physics to the Edge
YouTube video by Quanta Magazine
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Um…I know these are automatically generated, but you might wanna delete this particular one! Even if many people will not see it initially…
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
September fruit from my orchard. I picked these all today. Fuyu persimmons, flying dragon citrus, and red & green muscadines.
Plate with fruit I picked today: Fuyu persimmons, flying dragon citrus, and red & green muscadines.Fuyu persimmons hanging on branches A bunch of flying dragon citrus fruit growing on a thorny tree.Green and red muscadines on the vine.
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
Matt Zucker @mattz.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
This fall I am co-teaching a brand-new class – ENGR 009: Fabricating Tessellations and Tilings. It's roughly equal parts math and design, filtered thru an engineering perspective. The syllabus and all assignments are freely available to the public at mzucker.github.io/e9_f2026/
A hexagonal tile with a chamfered edge and an interacting sawtooth pattern.A 9-triangle polyiamond shown tiling with symmetries *x, 22x, 632, 22x (again), and 2222.A snippet of decorative tiles from the Alhambra.GRT Architects "flutes and reeds" tile system
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
I thought those petty shenanigans only had teeth if they came with a threat of withholding $250 million in federal funding.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Something DID happen. Three of the seven million dollar millennium mathematics problems from 25 years ago were potentially solved with the help of AI in the same WEEK. That is HUGE!
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
Dave Richeson @divbyzero.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Here's a thoughtful blog post about math and AI by Matt Baker. mattbaker.blog/2026/09/10/s...
mattbaker.blog
Some late-night thoughts on AI and the future of research in mathematics
Every time I’ve organized my thoughts sufficiently to finally write a proper blog post about the impact of AI on mathematical research, something massive happens which causes me to delay. I w…
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Or 15 more minutes of war with Iran.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Looks like it’s a term that he defined in the paper.
Google Translate from Russian:

We shall call an edge "sunken" if both faces incident to it are triangles, and "semi-sunken" if only one of them is a triangle.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Imagine the chaos that could ensue if there ends up being a split second difference between two different game clocks.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
We are so privileged. Someone born in a comparable wealthy social class today, who had 2 of their 5 children die before adulthood, would be described (and rightfully so) as having lived a painful life with unimaginable grief. No one would describe that lived experience as “surprisingly good.”
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
How is it even possible to say those differently?!?! I say Aaron and Erin the same, but I’ve heard them pronounced differently. But…Don and Dawn??
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
I also got Utah, at 54%. But my most similar city was Seattle, which is my hometown, and also at 54%. It’s definitely called a potato bug.
My dialect: 54% Utah. But most similar cities:

Seattle, Portland, LA (all 54%)
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
I made one 2 years ago and it works great. I’ll email it to you!
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
American Mathematical Society @amermathsoc.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
A recent Washington Post article titled "This may be the first academic profession to see its work taken over by AI," ponders if AI can solve mathematical problems, what is left for mathematicians to do? What do you think? Leave your comments below! Full story link in comments.
Close-up of a glowing microchip labeled AI embedded in a complex circuit board with blue and green pathways.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Yeah, apparently it’s been on the front page of Reddit and The Other 98% FB page. Didn’t know about this one though, thanks!
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
My 7-year-old daughter heard me say that Dolly Parton died, and got visibly very sad. I was surprised she even knew that name. “You know Dolly Parton?” In the sweetest timid voice, she replied: “Well, I don’t _know_ know her. But she sent me books.” 🥹😢😭
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Was the implication that Ms Rachel isn’t cool?!?
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
@complexzeta.bsky.social
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
You mean the Seahawks, Ken. And they’re called points, not runs. [Googles “Mariners.” Oh. 🤦‍♂️]
Titans 19, Seahawks 16, with 5:45 to play.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Ass. Dean
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Oh boy. I hate the be the bearer of bad news, but….
static.klipy.com
Kevinmcgarry: It Gets Worse & Worse
Alt: Kevinmcgarry: It Gets Worse & Worse
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
I assume that you mean other than 8675309, right?
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Academics, to "celebrate" the start of a new semester, post a WayBack Machine snapshot of your workplace from when you were applying to college (or a later milestone if you missed the dawn of dot edu) #WayBackCollegeChallenge
Snapshot of the Clemson University webpage in April 1999. Featuring Thurmond and Lindsey Graham…
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
And the anonymous discoverer (username: "ranksunbounded") has already been doxxed. I am not surprised AT ALL by who it was! 😂 (Same guy who announced "hello there the jacobian conjecture is false..." by tweet)
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
web.math.pmf.unizg.hr/~duje/tors/r...
web.math.pmf.unizg.hr
History of elliptic curves rank records
Table of elliptic curve rank records
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Yes, it’s in the video!
Screenshot of mathandcobb’s video showing the year of each time a new elliptic curve of max rank was discovered. From 3 (1938) to 29 (2024).
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Reposted by Matt Macauley
Andrew D Hwang @diffgeom.com · 21/08/2026
Please support independent creators as you shop for mathematical back-to-school posters, T-shirts, jewelry, and games: www.diffgeom.org/misc/math_sh... These are difficult times. We are all grateful for your support! #MathSky #MathArt #SciArt
"Collaboration," a postcard image from the collection You Are Here.
https://www.diffgeom.com/product-category/stationery/postcards/

A side-lit blue-gray compound of five cubes 400 feet across and having overall icosahedral symmetry hovers over a late-wintry body of water bordered by jutting, evergreen-covered shores. On a flat dun area in the middle distance, barely-visible figures walk beneath the cubes' bottom vertex.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Hey @denverr.bsky.social, do you ship your bourbon to Canada? 👀
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Nothing quite melts my heart like my 7-year-old daughter asking in earnest after dinner: “Daddy, can we do some abstract algebra?”
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
It took 62 days of playing, but today I finally got my first perfect score in #MapTap! (Albany, Athens, Singapore, Bangkok, Gaborone.) www.maptap.gg August 9 100🎯 100🎯 100🎯 100🎯 100🎯 Final score: 1000
maptap.gg
🎯MapTap Daily Geography Game
Play MapTap - the daily geography game! Find 5 world locations on a 3D globe with historical stories. Free browser-based daily game for geography lovers.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Please tell me there was a joke made about the mf’ing rotating snakes on that mf’ing hyperbolic plane!
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
In 2015, I planted a knee-high fig tree in a place that accumulated a lot of water (due to a cul-de-sac and hill), and also drained well. Here it is now. It gives me about 50 pounds of figs per week, for 3-4 weeks a year. I have a few other fig trees too, but I get 95% from this one.
Celeste tree at the end of my driveway that produces over 50 lbs/week for 3-4 weeks a year. I planted this in 2015.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
I’ve put generous portions in every salad I’ve eaten in the past month! 😂
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
When you get over 150 pounds of fresh figs in 3 weeks, you have to get creative. This is a cast iron skillet with wheel of Brie cheese, fresh figs, nuts, fresh rosemary, honey, balsamic glaze, and raw cane sugar. Baked for 30 minutes.
Cast iron skillet with Brie cheese, fresh figs,  nuts, fresh rosemary, honey, and balsamic glaze. Cast iron skillet with partially baked Brie cheese, fresh figs,  nuts, fresh rosemary, honey, balsamic glaze, and raw cane sugar. Cast iron skillet with baked melted Brie cheese, fresh figs,  nuts, fresh rosemary, honey, balsamic glaze, and raw cane sugar. Baked Brie cheese, fresh figs, nuts, fresh rosemary, honey, balsamic glaze, and raw cane sugar, on toasted everything seasoned sourdough.
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Happy Birthday!
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Mima’s not from WA. That was SVP saying he’s a Washingtonian. (He’s from the DC area.)
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Hey #MathSky. I’m teaching introductory linear algebra this fall for the first time in over a decade. What materials should I be aware of? I know I’ve seen a few posts about this sort of thing, but I don’t remember from whom or when. I don’t even know what (open) textbook(s) to use yet. Thank you!
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Let’s not lose sight of the fact that the majority of our political, monetary, and fiscal policy in the last 30 years can be summarized by “protecting the (current) older generation while entirely shafting younger people.”
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Matt Macauley @visualalgebra.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
I’ve gotten a few hyperfigs this year.
Several conjoined figs on a marble countertop.
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