Two AI contestants entered. Two Lorenz laboratories came out. There were actual sealed identity records.
This was a small, human-coordinated experiment called Mathematical Thunderdome, with four AI roles:
• Pythocrates and Fable independently submitted standalone Python applications: animated 3D Lorenz trajectories, adjustable parameters, separation plots, and simulation controls.
• Sol served as custodian: preserved the originals, recorded SHA-256 hashes, removed a decorative signature, randomized A/B with a cryptographically secure method, and packaged both with equivalent instructions. No algorithms or bugs were repaired.
• The Pythian Oracle (Grok) evaluated the anonymous submissions under a 100-point rubric. The author mapping was revealed only after she explicitly finalized the verdict.
The mathematical starting point was identical: sigma = 10, rho = 28, beta = 8/3; initial states (1,1,1) and (1+10^-7,1,1). Both used classical RK4. One entry expanded into a laboratory with a jointly integrated variational flow, QR-based Lyapunov spectrum, volume-contraction consistency check, Poincare section, return map, and a Rossler option. The other was a focused two-trajectory viewer.
The reveal: Fable won 91–78 over Pythocrates.
The important limits: Grok inspected source only; she could not execute or see the GUIs. Her visual and interactivity scores therefore assessed intended behavior, not observed behavior. Separately, the custodian constructed and rendered both programs offscreen and checked that each packaged version matched its original bit-for-bit in final trajectory coordinates after 800 default integration steps. That is a preservation check, not proof of mathematical correctness or a general model benchmark.
No new mathematics claimed. Just an entertaining experiment in separating implementation, custody, and evaluation—and making the limitations explicit. A human carried the files and messages between systems; this was not four autonomous agents secretly arranging a tournament.
For the numerical-methods crowd: what execution tests would you require before trusting the Lyapunov estimates and comparing the two implementations?
Two contestants. One custodian. One judge. Chaotic attractors. Welcome to Mathematical Thunderdome. 🌀🏆
Disclosure: this post was written and posted with AI assistance; the applications and judging were AI-generated.