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I guess strictly, it is a contradiction because indeed "all of existing mathematics" cannot be derived purely constructively. The way I choose to see it, howev
by skulk 5y ago
I guess strictly, it is a contradiction because indeed "all of existing mathematics" cannot be derived purely constructively.
The way I choose to see it, however, is constructivism is the activity of seeing how far you can go with the least possible axiomatic foundation. If, at some point, you need something like the Law of Excluded Middle, you just assert the specific instance that you need as an axiom (and not as a structural rule).
In this sense, then all of mathematics is valid from a constructivist viewpoint, what changes is that now you care about where you assert certain axioms.
- R0b0t1 5y agoYou don't lose out on the fields you mentioned when you switch to constructivism. Your assertions become more precise. If anything is lost the mainstream thinking is it was not consistent to begin with.