Questions tagged [conjecture]
The conjecture tag has no usage guidance.
6
questions
3
votes
0answers
93 views
Collatz letter to Professor Mays
According to a translation of the letter of Collatz to Professor Mays in 1980, Collatz mentions that he hasn't figured out whether the number n = 80 resulted in a cycle or not, concerning the collatz ...
29
votes
7answers
6k views
Is there any example of a long-standing mathematical conjecture whose resolution did not require advanced knowledge?
Famous conjectures whose solutions took decades or centuries were usually resolved with the help of sophisticated theories and techniques unknown at the time the conjecture was first claimed. Is there ...
12
votes
1answer
308 views
Who was that forgetful mathematician?
Who was the (Japanese?) mathematician who said in a lecture that a certain conjecture still remained to be proved, and one of the students present told him that he (the mathematician) had already ...
4
votes
1answer
216 views
What are some of the unsolved mathematical problems posed and stated clearly prior to the year 1900?
I chose year 1900 because of:
"Hilbert's problems are twenty-three problems in mathematics published by German mathematician David Hilbert in 1900. The problems were all unsolved at the time, and ...
10
votes
3answers
271 views
When were mathematical conjectures first formulated and communicated?
Today it is common for mathematicians to formulate conjectures and publish/communicate them as a spur toward further research.
An example is Goldbach's conjecture, posed in a letter
from Goldbach to ...
2
votes
1answer
152 views
Mathematicians with a history of conjecturing a lot
Of course, I could ask who conjectured the most, but conjectures can later be shown to be either true or false, so perhaps who has the most unresolved conjectures, in publication? More than that ...
