The spherical cow is a humorous metaphor in theoretical physics for overly simplified scientific models that make calculations feasible but sacrifice real-world applicability. Originating from a joke about a physicist solving a farm's milk production problem by assuming spherical cows in a vacuum, the phrase has become shorthand for the broader issue of improper modeling assumptions across disciplines.
Physicist Matt von Hippel challenged AI companies to solve a hard problem in theoretical physics: computing scattering amplitudes in N=4 super-Yang-Mills theory to nine loops using academic computing resources. Claude reportedly solved this long-standing problem in amplitudeology, demonstrating that computational limits previously thought insurmountable could be overcome with AI-assisted research.