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Re: Archaeopteryx flight
In a message dated 9/2/01 3:53:26 AM EST, david.marjanovic@gmx.at writes:
<< What I mean is that a mathematical proof involves showing that 2 things
are the same, that is, that 1 thing is the same as itself -- counterintuitive
sometimes, but IMHO nonetheless circular. The circles are just hanging from
definitions instead of floating around in vacuum. >>
No, a mathematical proof is a logically constructed sequence of statements
that extends from a set of statements known or assumed to be true to a
proposition whose truth is established by the existence of the sequence.
There is no circularity. Here the operative phrase, of course, is "logically
constructed."