4 ms·

$1 Million Question - Will Math Expert Accept Prize?

50 points by peter123 17y ago

petercooper 17y ago
There was an interesting BBC radio show that looked at this chap's achievements and 2006 win: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/thematerialworld_20060824.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/thematerialworld_2006082... (it's still listenable but is RealAudio, though VLC played it fine for me - I also just tested it through a US-based VPN and seemed to be OK unlike a lot of BBC content.) I also recall seeing a Marcus du Sautoy documentary where he went to Russia to try and meet Grigori (without much success as I recall). I can't find a watchable version of that, though.
- jgrahamc 17y ago
  That du Sautoy documentary was lame and the bit where he goes to Russia was cringe worthy. du Sautoy must have known that Perelman would never see him. If Perelman turned down the Fields then appearing on TV was hardly going to excite him. Ultimately that entire series was about du Sautoy going 'look at me, I'm clever'
  - petercooper 17y ago
    I got the feeling it was a bit "dumbed down" for the masses (à la the Xmas Lectures since about 1990) but I was still impressed. du Sautoy is still æons smarter than I am when it comes to math, after all.. :-)
  - ig1 17y ago
    Slightly off-topic but does anyone remember the name of that online maths teaching startup du Sautoy was involved with ?
    - Luc 17y ago
      http://www.mangahigh.com/en_gb/about/ http://www.mangahigh.com/en_gb/about/
Towle_ 17y ago
Uh...math "expert"? Let's try a different word, NYT.
- scott_s 17y ago
  What is wrong with the word? He clearly is an expert in math. Is your objection that it's redundant?
  - alexgartrell 17y ago
    I think he was looking for "mathematician".
    - CamperBob 17y ago
      Is there some reason to assume that all mathematicians are experts?
      - alextgordon 17y ago
        At least in the context of the headline, you can assume any mathematician being offered a $1m prize is likely to be an expert. In wider usage, I guess you could say "Math expert" to distinguish between students and professionals, but it's still as clear as mud because it doesn't state which field of mathematics the person is an expert in.
    - zs 17y ago
      I think Perelman himself wouldn't care too much what you call him. He would say something like: “Everybody understood that if the proof is correct then no other recognition is needed.” (As he said before.) You don't need a license to be a mathematician. There's this conjecture, undecided for 100 years. Whoever solves it gets the glory. He doesn't have to be a "mathematician" or an "expert". A correct proof is all it takes. He solved it, and all that's left for us is to discuss whether he's an expert or not:)
- dschobel 17y ago
  That caught my eye as well, my interpretation was that it was intentional as Perelman has retired from mathematics and is no longer a professional mathematician. I can't imagine any other reason for the odd phrasing and this being the NYT I'm going to assume some modicum of facility with the english language.
jpwagner 17y ago
for those interested... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solution_of_the_Poincaré_conjecture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solution_of_the_Poincaré_conjec...
hristov 17y ago
All they have to do is denounce those people that tried to steal Perelman's proof and claim it as partially their own. Obviously he has a very strict standards for honesty, and will not accept anything from the mathematics community, unless he perceives them as honest. I think mathematicians do not think they need to do anything because they think it is very clear by now who solved the Poincare conjecture and who did not, and there is no need to embarrass a very influential mathematician over the whole deal. But Perelman does not see it this way, and wants to be vindicated explicitly.
- almost 17y ago
  Go on...?
  - hristov 17y ago
    This explains the whole story: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/08/28/060828fa_fact2?currentPage=all http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/08/28/060828fa_fact2?c... Note that this has been strongly disputed by certain parties mentioned in the article that do not come off that well, but the New Yorker stands by the reporting and has not issued corrections.
    - CoreDumpling 17y ago
      Perelman, by casually posting a proof on the Internet of one of the most famous problems in mathematics, was not just flouting academic convention but taking a considerable risk. If the proof was flawed, he would be publicly humiliated, and there would be no way to prevent another mathematician from fixing any errors and claiming victory. This is both frightening and disappointing. I can hardly imagine how much advancement in the field is being held back by this attitude.
      - daniel-cussen 17y ago
        They think of this math as the math they saw in high school, which is focused on accuracy. No such thing is true. At this level, mathematics is about insights and creativity. It's like writing a novel, posting it on the internet, and having someone else fix the typos and claim it as their own.
judegomila 17y ago
http://www.ljplus.ru/img/e/l/ellustrator/puankare3w.jpg http://www.ljplus.ru/img/e/l/ellustrator/puankare3w.jpg ==> take the millions and shove it up your asses.....

50 points by peter123 17y ago

There was an interesting BBC radio show that looked at this chap's achievements and 2006 win: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/thematerialworld_20060824.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/thematerialworld_2006082... (it's still listenable but is RealAudio, though VLC played it fine for me - I also just tested it through a US-based VPN and seemed to be OK unlike a lot of BBC content.) I also recall seeing a Marcus du Sautoy documentary where he went to Russia to try and meet Grigori (without much success as I recall). I can't find a watchable version of that, though.

jgrahamc 17y ago
That du Sautoy documentary was lame and the bit where he goes to Russia was cringe worthy. du Sautoy must have known that Perelman would never see him. If Perelman turned down the Fields then appearing on TV was hardly going to excite him. Ultimately that entire series was about du Sautoy going 'look at me, I'm clever'
- petercooper 17y ago
  I got the feeling it was a bit "dumbed down" for the masses (à la the Xmas Lectures since about 1990) but I was still impressed. du Sautoy is still æons smarter than I am when it comes to math, after all.. :-)
- ig1 17y ago
  Slightly off-topic but does anyone remember the name of that online maths teaching startup du Sautoy was involved with ?
  - Luc 17y ago
    http://www.mangahigh.com/en_gb/about/ http://www.mangahigh.com/en_gb/about/

Towle_ 17y ago

Uh...math "expert"? Let's try a different word, NYT.

scott_s 17y ago
What is wrong with the word? He clearly is an expert in math. Is your objection that it's redundant?
- alexgartrell 17y ago
  I think he was looking for "mathematician".
  - CamperBob 17y ago
    Is there some reason to assume that all mathematicians are experts?
    - alextgordon 17y ago
      At least in the context of the headline, you can assume any mathematician being offered a $1m prize is likely to be an expert. In wider usage, I guess you could say "Math expert" to distinguish between students and professionals, but it's still as clear as mud because it doesn't state which field of mathematics the person is an expert in.
  - zs 17y ago
    I think Perelman himself wouldn't care too much what you call him. He would say something like: “Everybody understood that if the proof is correct then no other recognition is needed.” (As he said before.) You don't need a license to be a mathematician. There's this conjecture, undecided for 100 years. Whoever solves it gets the glory. He doesn't have to be a "mathematician" or an "expert". A correct proof is all it takes. He solved it, and all that's left for us is to discuss whether he's an expert or not:)
dschobel 17y ago
That caught my eye as well, my interpretation was that it was intentional as Perelman has retired from mathematics and is no longer a professional mathematician. I can't imagine any other reason for the odd phrasing and this being the NYT I'm going to assume some modicum of facility with the english language.

jpwagner 17y ago

for those interested... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solution_of_the_Poincaré_conjecture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solution_of_the_Poincaré_conjec...

hristov 17y ago

All they have to do is denounce those people that tried to steal Perelman's proof and claim it as partially their own. Obviously he has a very strict standards for honesty, and will not accept anything from the mathematics community, unless he perceives them as honest. I think mathematicians do not think they need to do anything because they think it is very clear by now who solved the Poincare conjecture and who did not, and there is no need to embarrass a very influential mathematician over the whole deal. But Perelman does not see it this way, and wants to be vindicated explicitly.

almost 17y ago
Go on...?
- hristov 17y ago
  This explains the whole story: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/08/28/060828fa_fact2?currentPage=all http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/08/28/060828fa_fact2?c... Note that this has been strongly disputed by certain parties mentioned in the article that do not come off that well, but the New Yorker stands by the reporting and has not issued corrections.
  - CoreDumpling 17y ago
    Perelman, by casually posting a proof on the Internet of one of the most famous problems in mathematics, was not just flouting academic convention but taking a considerable risk. If the proof was flawed, he would be publicly humiliated, and there would be no way to prevent another mathematician from fixing any errors and claiming victory. This is both frightening and disappointing. I can hardly imagine how much advancement in the field is being held back by this attitude.
    - daniel-cussen 17y ago
      They think of this math as the math they saw in high school, which is focused on accuracy. No such thing is true. At this level, mathematics is about insights and creativity. It's like writing a novel, posting it on the internet, and having someone else fix the typos and claim it as their own.

judegomila 17y ago

http://www.ljplus.ru/img/e/l/ellustrator/puankare3w.jpg http://www.ljplus.ru/img/e/l/ellustrator/puankare3w.jpg ==> take the millions and shove it up your asses.....