Origami Patterns Solve a Major Physics Riddle

Paper folds and particle collisions share a hidden mathematical soul.

Cornell mathematician Pavel Galashin has discovered that origami crease patterns mysteriously connect to the amplituhedron, a geometric shape whose volume reveals how subatomic particles interact. When you fold paper, the resulting patterns can be translated into points that form this same mystical shape physicists use to predict particle behavior.

"Pasha has done some brilliant work related to the amplituhedron before," said physicist Nima Arkani-Hamed, who discovered the shape in 2013. "But this is next-level stuff for me."

For decades, physicists struggled with explosive calculations when predicting particle collisions. Computing simple events required adding millions of terms from squiggly Feynman diagrams. The amplituhedron offered elegant relief, transforming complex math into geometry.

But physicists needed proof that this shape could be cleanly divided into building blocks matching their calculations. Galashin's origami connection provided that proof, confirming physicists' decade-old hunch about how the amplituhedron fits together.

The discovery emerged while Galashin studied origami's computational mysteries, particularly whether crease patterns can always produce properly flattening shapes. His work bridges seemingly unrelated worlds, revealing unexpected order beneath apparent chaos.