AI
Old and new apps, via modern coding agents
Image: Primary Mathematician Terence Tao said he used modern AI coding agents to port approximately two dozen Java applets from 1999 to JavaScript and to create new visualization tools. Tao said the migration of applets for complex analysis, linear algebra, and mathematical objects such as honeycombs and Besicovitch sets took hours and produced only one minor bug while the agent identified two previously unknown bugs in the original code. Tao said he also generated a long-abandoned special relativity visualization tool described as "Inkscape, but in Minkowski space" after a couple of hours of interaction with an agent. He said he subsequently created a visualization for the Gilbreath conjecture to accompany a recent paper and blog post. Tao said the process was painless enough that he may add similar interactive visualizations as supplements for future papers, noting the downside risk is acceptable because the tools are secondary visual aids rather than critical components of mathematical arguments. Tao said he is seeking feedback on the alpha version of the relativity applet.
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