3 ms·

I assume an average high school graduate can solve a sudoku. LLMs are very interesting but anything “thinking”-related is not their strong suit.

• bawolff 3y ago
  Solving sudoku is not really a proof. Like its a witness that a solution exists but i dont think that's really the thing most people mean by write a proof. LLMs are really good at cutting and pasting from the internet. That's the level i would expect from average high school student.
  • thaumasiotes 3y ago
    Solving sudoku is a pure exercise in proving what the solution is. But most sudoku tend to be unsatisfying in that you're forced to use trial and error. The more formal term would be "proof by cases": once your fun proving has reached its limits, you've shown that a particular cell must contain either 5 or 7. If you show that that cell containing a 5 will lead to a contradiction, you've created an impeccable proof that the cell contains a 7. The distinction you've stated would only come into play if the number of possible solutions to a puzzle differs from one; if there are no solutions, you have inconsistent premises and your proofs will be valid but not sound. If there are several solutions, then guessing and being right will, as you describe, create a proof that a solution exists, but it won't prove that that solution is unique or characterize what valid solutions are like, both of which are common mathematical goals.