Math’s ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’ Has Been Debunked | Quanta Magazine
It was intuitive, even obvious. It was also wrong.
Hasnain says:
“In the meantime, Pak says, it’s clear that mathematicians need to engage in a more active discussion about the nature of mathematical proof. He and his colleagues ultimately didn’t have to rely on controversial computational methods; they were able to disprove the conjecture with total certainty. But as computer- and AI-based lines of attack become more common in mathematics research, some mathematicians are debating whether the field’s norms will eventually have to change. “It’s a philosophical question,” Alon said. “How do we view proofs that are only true with high probability?””
Posted on 2024-11-10T05:55:07+0000