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I don't think this explanation would really work on a 12 year old. I doubt it will work on most adults, who have been through college, but maybe that's just me.
by edanm 15y ago
I don't think this explanation would really work on a 12 year old. I doubt it will work on most adults, who have been through college, but maybe that's just me.
By the way, if you're interested in learning actual proofs of Godel's Theorems, you should take a look at this book: http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-G%25f6dels-Cambridge-Introductions-Philosophy/dp/0521674530/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327223816&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Introduction-G%25f6dels-Cambridge-Intr...
I haven't gone through all of it, but I've read much of the beginning. It actually starts off with easy proofs of Godel's Theorem, based much more on Computer Science explanations than Mathematical Logic.
- jstclair 15y agoHaven't read that one, but I try to re-read Nagel and Newman's at least once a year: http://www.amazon.com/Gödels-Proof-Ernest-Nagel/dp/0814758371 http://www.amazon.com/Gödels-Proof-Ernest-Nagel/dp/081475837... One thing I love about N&N is that it's short (160 pages) and the paperback is cheap ($7.65) so that I have no compunctions in lending it out.
- edanm 15y agoYes, I've read that one as well. It was a while ago, but from what I remember, it was higher-level than the Smith book. The Smith book is basically a normal mathematics curriculum book, not a "pop science" book (not to say that N&N is), which works out theorem after theorem to get to Godel's proof. Also, it starts off with computer-science proofs instead of the original Godel proofs, which many in this audience will probably prefer.