arxiv.org/abs/2505.24818 Symmetry breaking in minimum dissipation networks
A study posted to arXiv reports that optimal transport networks minimizing dissipation break symmetry in two ways: weakly, where topology stays symmetric but edge capacities differ, and strongly, which alters the topology itself. The authors argue that network meshing, resource limits and fluctuations make symmetry breaking a general organizing principle, with symmetric structures favored at intermediate noise levels.