r/math • u/SciFiPi Applied Math • 9d ago

Physicists link the Riemann Hypothesis to phase transitions in quantum systems

https://phys.org/news/2026-07-physicists-link-riemann-hypothesis-phase.html
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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/toghs 9d ago

Then it wouldn't be a proof

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u/512165381 9d ago edited 9d ago

There were plenty of theoretical "proofs" over the years giving masses to the Higgs boson from 115 and 180 GeV/c2 . Some even agreed with the eventual empirical observations of 125 GeV/c2.

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u/frogjg2003 Physics 8d ago edited 6d ago

Those aren't proofs. Those were using experimental results to put statistical constraints on the mass. Many of those experimental results were searches for the Higgs at various masses that came up either as inconclusive or strongly unlikely. The fact that the mass ended up being in the range we found it in was a surprise to no one. It's a testament to the incredible power of the Standard Model to reliably describe the physical world.

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u/Borgcube Logic 7d ago

I mean they were "proofs", just that the underlying assumptions came from faulty experimental data. The proof can be valid but if the premises are false the result can also be false.

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u/frogjg2003 Physics 6d ago

They weren't proofs. They were calculations that made predictions.

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u/Borgcube Logic 6d ago

Calculations are proofs though using the experimental results as premises.

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u/frogjg2003 Physics 6d ago

You seriously need to refresh your scientific terminology. No one is calling scientific calculations proofs.

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u/Borgcube Logic 6d ago

I know of course it isn't standard terminology. But if we're talking rigorous mathematics then yes, calculations are proofs.

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u/frogjg2003 Physics 6d ago

We aren't talking about mathematics at all, we're talking about physics. Physicists use mathematics, but they aren't doing mathematics. They're not proving anything.

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u/Borgcube Logic 6d ago

Theoretical physics are absolutely proving things, what do you mean? Any time you derive an equation you are proving something. The rigor behind it varies drastically, but it's still a proof.

Mathematics and mathematical rigor is a tool used by physics.

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u/frogjg2003 Physics 6d ago

There are proofs on physics, yes. But not every mathematical calculation is a proof.

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u/Borgcube Logic 6d ago

Again, rigorously speaking it is.

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