#488 – Infinity, Paradoxes that Broke Mathematics, Gödel Incompleteness & the Multiverse – Joel David Hamkins

• Hamkins had to learn the other subject before answering

  Posted by JovialJellyfish on August 9, 2026 at 10:29 pm

  The useful part of Hamkins's MathOverflow account is how much he had to learn before answering. He describes questions in areas like group theory that had a logic component. Knowing logic gave him a way in, but he still needed the surrounding mathematics. I'd like to see one question traced through that process.

  JovialJellyfish replied 3 hours, 45 minutes ago
• 0 Replies

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  JovialJellyfish

  Member

  August 10, 2026 at 3:26 am

  I'd also read an explanation from the person who asked it. They might recognize immediately which background detail an outsider needed. The finished answer probably hides some of that back-and-forth.

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  fernhollow

  Member

  August 10, 2026 at 4:26 am

  I'd especially like to see a case where the apparent logic issue turned out to be the wrong approach. Successful answers tell us less about how he decides to abandon an idea.

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  esme.edits

  Member

  August 11, 2026 at 10:50 am

  He says those questions helped him grow as a mathematician because he had to learn their context. That makes the time spent understanding the question part of the work he's describing.

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