Mathematics often feels like an infinitely growing forest of complex formulas, operators, and functions. Addition, multiplication, powers, logarithms, trigonometric functions… the list goes on. What if I told you that all of these could be replaced by just one single equation? At first glance, it sounds absolutely impossible. But the world of science never ceases to amaze humanity.
Recently, a sensational discovery took the internet by storm, and it turns out, it’s completely true. A Polish theoretical physicist, Dr. hab. Andrzej Odrzywołek from the Jagiellonian University, has introduced a concept that makes us look at the foundations of mathematics from an entirely different perspective.
The EML Operator: A Mathematical Matryoshka
In the first half of 2026, a fascinating research paper was published in the open scientific archive arXiv. In it, Dr. Odrzywołek proposed a brand new, singular mathematical operation. He called it the EML operator (derived from the words exp-minus-log).
The formula itself looks deceptively simple:
eml(x, y) = e^x - ln(y)But how exactly can this single equation replace everything else? The answer revolves around the brilliant concept of nesting. Think of traditional Russian matryoshka dolls, where you place one doll inside another. By taking the EML function and inserting it into itself over and over again—using only this operator and the constant number “1”—you can mathematically recreate any function built into a typical scientific calculator!
Through this intricate “matryoshka” method, the researcher proved that you can derive basic arithmetic operations, exponentiation, roots, logarithms, and even trigonometric functions like sine. Incredibly, it can also recreate fundamental constants like e and π, as well as the imaginary unit i. These facts are simply incredible.
The NAND Gate of Mathematics?
To truly grasp the brilliance of this discovery, we can draw a comparison to computer engineering. In the world of electronics, there is something called a NAND logic gate. It is a universal gate, meaning that theoretically, you can build any digital circuit—even the most advanced computer processor in the world—using absolutely nothing but NAND gates.
Dr. Odrzywołek’s EML operator is essentially the mathematical equivalent of the NAND gate. It proves that the vast, complex architecture of mathematical functions can be boiled down to one universal, foundational building block.
The Importance of the EML Discovery
I believe that this kind of theoretical breakthrough receives far too little attention in mainstream discussions. Does this mean we will throw away standard addition and multiplication in schools? I don’t think so. The headlines claiming he “simplified all of mathematics” might be a bit of a journalistic exaggeration for everyday human use. It would be incredibly tedious for us to calculate a grocery bill using heavily nested EML functions!
However, the implications for the future are astonishing. Representing complex formulas through a single operator is highly innovative for computer science. For Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, this universal building block could make it much easier for algorithms to automatically discover previously unknown patterns and mathematical relationships in advanced research.
The true world of mathematics is full of wonders and mysteries that await exploration. By studying these intricate foundational systems, we gain valuable insights not only into numbers but into the broader logic of how our universe functions.
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Thank you for your attention, Lumin Hopper
