UnboundedFigures exists to make mathematical collaboration visible, human, and open to everyone. These guidelines define the standards that make that possible. They are not a long list of rules — they are a description of how this community works.
Our Principles
Everything in these guidelines flows from four beliefs:
Anyone can do mathematics.
No credentials required. No affiliations necessary. If you're thinking mathematically, you belong here.
Creativity comes before rigor.
A half-formed idea shared honestly is more valuable than a polished claim that never sees daylight. We protect early-stage thinking.
Collaboration is the point.
Mathematical progress is social. We build on each other's work, credit each other's contributions, and lift each other up.
Gatekeeping is the only unforgivable offense.
Telling someone they aren't "real" enough, credentialed enough, or formal enough to participate is the one thing we won't tolerate.
Mathematical Content Standards
All levels of mathematical sophistication are welcome
A total beginner’s hunch and a professional mathematician’s conjecture are both valid contributions here. The platform is not a peer-review journal. It is a place where mathematical thinking of every kind can find a home.
Maturity tags are social contracts
When a sketch carries a Whisper tag, it is explicitly asking not to be critiqued. Engaging critically with Whisper-tagged content, even if your critique is technically correct, violates the spirit of how this platform works. Match your engagement style to the tag.
Bridges are contributions, not attacks
A bridge that shows a conjecture is false is just as valuable as one that proves it true. But how you deliver that response matters. Counterexamples should be offered as gifts, not weapons. “This is false because...” is a contribution. “This is obviously wrong” is not.
Give credit honestly
If your work builds directly on another user’s sketch, approach, or idea, acknowledge it. Mathematical culture has always credited prior work — this platform is no different.
AI and Computational Tools
Permitted — AI as a tool
Using AI to assist with typesetting, formatting, grammar, computation, literature search, or code generation is encouraged. These uses serve human mathematical thinking rather than replacing it. No disclosure is required for this level of use.
Required disclosure — AI as a contributor
If an AI system substantially shaped the mathematical insight, conjecture, argument structure, or proof strategy in your submission, disclose it. The bar for disclosure is whether removing the AI’s contribution would leave the mathematical core intact.
Acceptable ways to disclose AI involvement:
- Enabling the “AI-Assisted” tag on your Project Lab project
- A note in your submission body: e.g., “Note: the framing of this argument was suggested by an AI, though the underlying intuition is my own.”
- A brief disclosure in comments on the submission
Prohibited — Undisclosed AI authorship
Submitting content where AI generated the mathematical insight without any disclosure — presenting AI-written proofs, conjectures, or arguments as your own original thinking — violates these guidelines. This applies regardless of how sophisticated the AI’s output is.
We distinguish between human-directed AI (permitted with disclosure) and AI-generated content presented as wholly human (prohibited). When in doubt, disclose. Transparency costs nothing.
Respectful Interaction
Mathematical disagreement is healthy and expected. Personal attacks are not.
- Critique ideas, not people. “I think the bound doesn’t hold in this case...” is good. “You clearly don’t understand...” is not.
- Don’t invoke credentials as authority. “As a professor...” carries no special weight here. The math speaks for itself.
- Don’t dismiss work for being informal or imprecise. The whole platform exists to formalize informal thinking.
- Don’t harass, threaten, or intimidate users, publicly or privately.
- Don’t target or single out individuals for coordinated negative attention.
Prohibited Content
The following are not permitted on UnboundedFigures:
- Plagiarism — submitting another person’s mathematical work as your own
- Undisclosed AI authorship of mathematical content
- Impersonation of other users, mathematicians, or public figures
- Harassment, hate speech, or content targeting individuals based on identity
- Spam, coordinated manipulation, or artificially inflating engagement
- Content that is illegal under applicable law
- Content designed to mislead the community about the nature or origin of a mathematical result
Enforcement
We apply these guidelines with judgment, not a rigid point system. Context matters. Violations are evaluated based on intent, severity, and pattern.
For minor or first-time violations where the behavior is clearly unintentional or easily corrected.
For content that violates these guidelines, regardless of account standing.
For serious or repeated violations, or for behavior that disrupts the community.
For egregious violations, sustained harassment, or bad-faith behavior.
Reporting
If you see content or behavior that violates these guidelines, report it to tsamuels456@gmail.com with a link to the content and a brief description of the concern. We review all reports and aim to respond within 72 hours for serious issues.
We do not retaliate against good-faith reports, even when we determine no violation occurred.