Np-hard Memes

Mathematicians and computational geometrists having wildly different reactions to packing problems is peak nerd culture. The 2D square packing? Snooze-worthy. But throw in some 3D chess pieces with their complex geometries and suddenly it's the intellectual equivalent of a rave party. The complexity jump from 2D to 3D packing is actually enormous - going from a polynomial-time solvable problem to an NP-hard computational nightmare that makes supercomputers sweat. It's like comparing a kiddie pool to the Mariana Trench. No wonder our mathematician friend is fully awakened by that sweet, sweet 3D packing challenge!