Re: Raatikainen's critique of Chaitin

From: Robin Chapman (rjc_at_ivorynospamtower.freeserve.co.uk)
Date: 09/08/04 

Date: Wed, 08 Sep 2004 14:34:34 +0100

Jussi Piitulainen wrote:

> Jesse F. Hughes writes:
>> Robin Chapman writes:
>>> No, you denied it; you did not refute it.
>>
>> Unfortunately for those of us with backgrounds in math and logic, a
>> common meaning of "refute" is a synonym for "deny".
> [...]
>> It's not a usage I like, but it's common enough to be in some
>> dictionaries. I don't know if it's just an Americanism.

It's a vile usage --- it may or may not be an Americanism
but it's certainly a politicianism :-( 

-- 
Robin Chapman, www.maths.ex.ac.uk/~rjc/rjc.html
"Lacan, Jacques, 79, 91-92; mistakes his penis for a square root, 88-9"
Francis Wheen, _How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World_

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