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Mathematicians have found a hidden 'reset button' for undoing rotation

(www.newscientist.com)
184 points mikhael | 2 comments | 16 Oct 25 15:47 UTC | HN request time: 0.41s | source
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kronodeus ◴[21 Oct 25 22:15 UTC] No.45662412[source]▶
This article is written in a very annoying and misleading way. The discovery is not that rotation can be "reset". That is obvious and not surprising at all. Physical systems governed by classical mechanics are reversible just by perfectly inverting all forces, velocities, and rotations. The actual discovery is the shortcut to the original position without the need to perfectly inverse the full sequence of rotations.
replies(2): >>45662503 #>>45662910 #
1. clysm ◴[21 Oct 25 22:25 UTC] No.45662503[source]▶
Kind of like… a “hidden reset”…
replies(1): >>45663431 #
2. kronodeus ◴[22 Oct 25 00:10 UTC] No.45663431[source]▶
The title itself is not the problem, although even that is sensationalized. I was referring to the contents of the article, which have statements like this:

"Is there a way for you to spin the top again so it ends up in the exact position it started, as if you had never spun it at all? Surprisingly, yes..."

Which, as an introduction, just misses the mark completely by highlighting the least surprising possible interpretation of the research.