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TheOtherHobbes • today at 10:48 AM • 2 replies • view on HN

Some math has almost incalculable business value, because math is the biggest driver of game-changer technology.

We'd be nowhere without Laplace and Fourier transforms, Maxwell's equations, elliptic curve cryptography, and many more.

Most math doesn't, but often these techniques are invented first and the applications come later.

And the criticism of the current round of proofs is that while they may be true - likely for some, questionable for others - they're not adding new techniques or insights.


Replies

nbaksalyar • today at 11:59 AM

> often these techniques are invented first and the applications come later

There's a great paper from Abraham Flexner on this topic:

https://worrydream.com/refs/Flexner_1939_-_The_Usefulness_of...

It argues exactly that we should be allowed to pursue the seemingly "useless" knowledge.

Previously discussed on HN:

https://hn.algolia.com/?q=usefulness+of+useless+knowledge

xeonmc • today at 11:31 AM

The deluge of maybe-proofs have the same problem as the Library of Babel.