Gordian knot

Essentially, by plugging the equations of the Standard Model into powerful computers, researchers can numerically approximate the mess of hadronic blobs, cutting through the subatomic Gordian knot.

“If you’re in the middle of providing abortion pills, inevitably that in this country right now is going to become a Gordian knot for your company,” he said.

Davies have argued, and in political and ideological terms, it's something of a Gordian knot that defies any facile analysis.

It is tempting to cut through the Gordian knot of checks and balances and the inconvenient thing we call the rule of law by putting someone in charge to give orders and knock heads.

It is one obstacle in a Gordian knot of challenges that have rendered the problem intractable for decades, as underscored by conditions in North Spirit Lake, a close-knit community of roughly 300 people.