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This reminds me of my logic professor in college. He would often tell us stories about Kurt Godel, who he'd worked with at the IAS. My prof blew me away one d
by smalter 14y ago
This reminds me of my logic professor in college. He would often tell us stories about Kurt Godel, who he'd worked with at the IAS.
My prof blew me away one day when he said that Godel had 3 good ideas -- Godel numbering, and two more that I can't remember.
He didn't say it in a way that was meant to put down Godel at all. I took it as an homage to original thought and what it really meant to have a good idea.
- cb18 14y agoGodel numbering, and two more that I can't remember. hmm... That list seems incomplete.
- dllthomas 14y agoBetter than inconsistent.
- mafribe 14y agoGödel numbers were invented by Leibniz a few hundred years earlier. It's not known whether Gödel knew about this when he proved incompletness, but given that Gödel was a serious Leiniz scholar especially later in life, and held him in highest esteem, it is not impossible that he did. That said, Gödel had many more great ideas.
- Confusion 14y agoIt's probably more accurate to say that his great idea was to recognize what you could do with Gödel numbers: meta-mathematics.