logoalt Hacker News

fhdkweig • today at 8:10 PM • 4 replies • view on HN

The problem of the proof was that we knew that FCT was true, but we had no idea why. A good/elegant proof teaches us something new about how that problem is related to other problems. It isn't just about getting a true/false answer to the conjecture.


Replies

omnicognate • today at 8:45 PM

Indeed, and the computer aided proof discouraged research into the insightful proof a lot of mathematicians think is probably out there to find. "Proved but not insightfully" is a problem status some mathematicians are starting to think of as closer to "open" than "closed", which is a good thing IMO. (I am not a mathematician, though)

➕ show 1 reply
nowittyusername • today at 10:27 PM

I don't think it will be a problem for long, as AI systems evolve they will be able to find those elegant solutions and explanations for you in due time...

➕ show 1 reply
utopcell • today at 9:33 PM

> "The problem of the proof was that we knew that FCT was true"

Citation needed.

➕ show 1 reply
aaron695 • today at 9:48 PM

[dead]