A purported new mathematics proof is impenetrable – now what?
Tuesday, December 22, 2015 - 09:22
in Mathematics & Economics
What happens when someone claims to have proved a famous conjecture? Well, it depends. When a paper is submitted, the journal editor will pass it off to a respected expert for examination. That referee will then scan the paper looking for a significant new idea. If there isn't one, then the whole argument is unlikely to get much more scrutiny.