Skip to main content
replaced http://tea.mathoverflow.net/ with http://mathoverflow.tqft.net/
Source Link

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above re-formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow threadthread about this question.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above re-formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above re-formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

Post Reopened by Steve Huntsman, algori, François G. Dorais, Qiaochu Yuan, Joel David Hamkins
added 5 characters in body
Source Link
Amichai
  • 101
  • 1
  • 6

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above formulationre-formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above re-formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

added 90 characters in body; added 20 characters in body
Source Link
Amichai
  • 101
  • 1
  • 6

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread as provided by Timothy Chowthread about this question.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above formulation of the question was copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread as provided by Timothy Chow.

It is widely believed that mathematicians have a uniform standard of what constitutes a correct proof. However, this standard has, at minimum, changed over time. What are some striking examples where controversies have arisen over what constitutes a correct proof?

Examples of this include:

  1. The acceptability of the use of the axiom of choice
  2. The acceptability of proofs that rely on assuming that a computer has performed a certain computation correctly
  3. The debate over intuitionistic logic versus classical logic
  4. Hilbert's re-examination of Euclid's axioms and his discovery of unstated assumptions therein
  5. Debates over the use of infinitesimals in calculus, culminating in Weierstrass's epsilons and deltas. There are of course many others.

Edit:

The above formulation of the question was provided by Timothy Chow and copied directly from the meta.mathoverflow thread about this question.

added 557 characters in body; edited title
Source Link
Amichai
  • 101
  • 1
  • 6
Loading
Post Closed as "not constructive" by Harry Gindi, Noah Snyder, Robin Chapman, Andrew Stacey, Qiaochu Yuan
deleted 1 characters in body; deleted 4 characters in body; edited tags
Source Link
Amichai
  • 101
  • 1
  • 6
Loading
Post Made Community Wiki
Source Link
Amichai
  • 101
  • 1
  • 6
Loading