chongo@nsc.UUCP (Landon C. Noll) (08/26/84)
i rank myself with the people who view a CAREFUL computer proof as a VALID proof. i might add that 'human' proofs have not been above there mistakes. a math prof. of mine one said: "a proof is a statment which is accepted as being true by the vast majority of the math community." rejecting a computer proof sometimes is a result of 'computer-phobia'. (NOTE i said SOMETIMES) i remember one prof. who was deeply disturbed by MACSYMA/VAXIMA. he felt math was a subject where humans may only tread, and the thought of a program which could integrate circles around him (its easyer to square the circle then to get round a mathematician :-) ) bothered him. do people who reject the 4-color proof also reject the proof that 2^132049-1 is prime? what about the proof that 2^127-1 is prime, it was done by computer too! in fact 2^31-1 was done using a calculator... chongo <computer proofs can be valid> /\../\ -- "Aw Ping-Puckety Yung Tiug Too!! Nee! Nee! Yaaaoooowwwwwwwww!!!!!" Wise King Otto of Happy Valley