Re: How to tell if a theory is a good one

From: Bill Hobba (bhobba_at_rubbish.net.au)
Date: 10/09/04 

Date: Sat, 09 Oct 2004 02:34:18 GMT

"Torkel Franzen" <torkel@sm.luth.se> wrote in message
news:vcb4ql43jhu.fsf@beta19.sm.ltu.se...
> "Bill Hobba" <bhobba@rubbish.net.au> writes:
>
> > The proof of Fermats last theorem I
> > believe involved ideas way beyond what anyone would attempt in the
formal
> > language of PA eg Riemann surfaces and elliptic and modular functions.
So it
> > is possible one may never know if it is a question that could be
answered in
> > the formal syntax of PA. Does that make it wrong - well it depends on
what
> > one means by wrong.
>
> It's unclear from these comments whether or not you accept the proof
> of FLT.

Sorry it was so unclear - I accept both the proof of FLT and your proof of
the consistancy of arithmetic. Of course I have not checked the proof of
FLT.

> But my simple point has been throughout that if you do not
> accept that the consistency of PA has been proved, you have no grounds
> for accepting any of a host of other mathematical results as
> proved. There is nothing special about the consistency proof for PA.

I now see the point you have made and I accept it. Although I have never
doubted for one moment it was not consistent.

Thanks
Bill

Relevant Pages

  • Re: How to tell if a theory is a good one
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