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From: dkahn400
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  • I'm reading The Girl Who Played With Fire and watching this to find out more about Fermat's thoerem. Good luck Lisbeth. =P

  • Where was this video filmed? Also, wasn't the guy at the beginning kind of....NERDY!!!

  • @DisneyGirlRocks You think?

  • @DisneyGirlRocks That "guy" at the beginning did what no one else could in four hundred years. His name is one of a few thousand that will be remembered til the end of civilization.

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  • @DisneyGirlRocks "DisneyGirlRocks ", that name says enough. kthnx

  • @DisneyGirlRocks Thats Andrew Wiles you nob, the whole reason you're watching this video

  • Don't forget the contribution of the Japanese guys and the man that made a subproof wich could be used in the main proof. Without them Andrew Wiles probably wouldn't have been able to prove this.

  • one (1) is a valid exponent, but only the exponent of two (2) will work for the equation a^2 + b^2 = c^2. If you want, you could play with different exponents to see for yourself that only the exponent of two (2) will work.

  • @edgarmartinez08 And after an infinite number of trials you will have proved Fermat correct.

  • @edgarmartinez08 however that is not a mathematical proof unless you prove it for an infinite number of exponents, which by definition is matehmaticaly impossible...

  • @kajakpaddler92 I could be wrong, but I think you may be utilizing semantics of our limited English language and relying on an oxymoron as a means to draw your conclusion.

  • @edgarmartinez08 no way, what I ment was that your suposed proof of Fermat's last theorem is not a mathematical proof since it is not a general proof. e.g If I ask you to prove that (a*b)/2 is greater or equal to sqrt(a*b) with a,b integers you cannot give me an example using a finite number of numbers to prove the inequality, you have to present a general proof... that's what makes Fermat's last theorem so dificult to prove...

  • I have thought of a most marvelous comment, but this margin is too small to contain it.

  • 20:48 of course it sounds quite simple man :p

  • What a wonderful tale of human discovery and so well told.

  • I don't know shit about mathematics,

    but this doc did a good job explaining the basic concepts of the complicated problems, that, overall, I got the gist of what Wiles was trying to solve.

    I found this video to be awesome & inspiring.

  • @themightycelestial Same here. I'm so not into mathematics but the dedication of this man is so well shown, seen this doc over 3 times now and it still gets me thinking.

  • I can't believe I just sat here and watched the whole thing. I was only going to watch a couple minutes.

  • Fermat disliked this video

  • To be honest, this doesn't seem so complicating to me. Unless I'm misunderstanding it.

    Basically in any situation you need to find 2 perfect roots (so if the n value is 3, then it would be 1,8,27 etc) that can add to give you another plausible perfect root of the same n value. This will never occur because if you add any two values of those lists (again the 1,8,27,64 etc) it will always be smaller than the number one step above the highest x or y value. So it is simply impossible.

  • @ixcaliber Never mind, I caught an error in my solution.

  • @ixcaliber Sorry, that is not a correct statement of the problem. The challenge is to find any 3 whole numbers which, when raised to the same whole number power other than 2, give 3 new numbers, one of which is equal to the sum of the other 2. In other words, find any 4 whole numbers x, y, z and n that fit the equation x^n + y^n = z^n and where n>2 or show that it is impossible. If it were trivial it would not have defeated the world's greatest mathematicians for well over 300 years.

  • @dkahn400 Well I already said that I pointed out a mistake in my solution. You did not need to re-state the puzzle, after I just did exactly that. I fully understand how this puzzle works.

  • @ixcaliber :-)

  • how did fermat prove it.

    some ancient astronaut theorists believe.....

  • 10 yrs old....he is smart:)

  • I have a proof for the last theorem, that there is special class of whole numbers greater than 2 for which the equation does work !!! Unfortunately this commentary box is to small to contain it.

  • I like how they just start giving up explaining things when the get to modular forms.

  • This man is a hero and his wife is hot. Mathematicians don't get the respect they deserve.

  • omg i just watched it without falling asleep and it is actually quiet interesting im at 16:00 min :o

  • @mollyluvsdogs You sound like you are proud of yourself for not falling asleep. Wow

  • am i the only person who finds this boreing...howd i even get to this video

  • @mollyluvsdogs Pretty stupid surfing by you then. You find it boring because you've got a boring life - you don't know how you got to this video, says a lot about you.

    In reality, if you're a mathematician or want to be one, you will find this an amazing video and will possibly be inspired by Andrew Wiles, in my eyes, the greatest mathematician alive. I salute him.

  • @WaySide66 Try this link. Copy and paste directly into your browser's address bar. math.stanford.edu/~lekheng/flt­­/wiles.pdf

  • @WaySide66 Apologies. I accidentally removed your comment while trying to delete and repost my response. YouTube intentionally makes it hard to post links. After pasting you may find extra characters in there which you will have to remove. The proof itself is very tough going - it's over 100 pages.

  • Ah maths you dirty whore... Seriously geeks... Its only maths if its useless otherwise it is classified as physics or chemistry or pastry cheffing. Pffft maths what a lol :-). Jk just thought id stir the pot a little.

  • @vanderspeed haha that got me laughing :)

  • so is the theorum right or not...yes he found proof, whats bottomline i new i should have used google instead.

  • @THE16THPHANTOM Yes. Wiles proved that Fermat was correct.

  • @THE16THPHANTOM The bottom line is that nothing but a^2 + b^2 = c^2. No other numbers raised to any other power (than 2) will work.

  • @edgarmartinez08 what about first power?

  • @o0thisismyusername0o No, because raising something to the first power doesn't change anything. 2^1 is still only 2. 10^1 is still only 10. Does this make sense?

  • @edgarmartinez08 so? it is still a valid exponent other than 2

  • @edgarmartinez08 you're not raising it to the first power it is already to the first power.

  • Great documentary! What an astonishing achievement!

    I find it most amazing that he was able to remain employed for those 7 years at Princeton. What employer doesn't insist on knowing what an employee is workiing on for the better part of a decade? I want THAT job!

  • @MelTurpin Easy. Simply become a tenured professor of maths at Princeton.

  • @dkahn400 Zed Zee LOL

  • 20:30 "at this cafe"... it's in Berkeley, not San Francisco, and it's Caffe Strada (formerly Caffe Roma).

  • Fantastic documentary. I particularly like the opening sequence with Andrew.

    I'm not sure if he breaks down because of the realization that the greatest achievement of his life is in the rear view mirror, or that he will never have a problem that challenging ever again.

  • @Humaninsoul no matter how messy his desk, or how untidy his teeth, he is and will always be a greater person than you can ever even begin to dream. that must suck for you.

  • The passion and ethos is just amazing!

  • I don't think you need to be a talented mathematician to appreciate how remarkable this is. I envy him.

  • IM WATCHING YOU PHIL AND ISAAC

  • Wiles' office is neater than mine

  • Ci vorrebbe un'anima buona che doppiasse in italiano questo documento di volgarizzazione di questa sublime dimostrazione

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  • I just laughed my ass off at 38:50-39:02

  • @tryandlike That is a great moment (38:50) in the story...it ain't over ;-O

    You could put 1000 actors in a room, and they wouldn't be able to produce that priceless look that Wiles gives. Wiles:

    "The world thinks I've solved a great problem...but I havn't...now I have an even BIGGER PROBLEM"

  • Amazing.

    I bet if he'd kept that desk tidy, he'd come up with the solution in 2 years. :)

  • What is the music featured at 09:15 minutes?

  • @mateteh Metal Guru by T. Rex, written by the lead vocalist, Marc Bolan.

  • @dkahn400 35:35 What music is this? I heard the new CenturyLink commercial and instantly identified the guitar piece from this great documentary. Any idea?

  • @myrtlebox Steady State by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra.

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  • justin bieber

  • The part around 22:20-22:50 explains what every mathematician should aim for: finding patterns!

  • i have a solution, its infinity to the power of whatever the fuck you want

  • Thanks Google.

  • @vanderspeed Ba-dum tishhhh

  • Of Fermat's number theoretic work, the great 20th century mathematician André Weil wrote that "... what we possess of his methods for dealing with curves of genus 1 is remarkably coherent;....... André Weil --- Andrew Wiles.

    Beautiful!

  • on a surface where the x axis represents only the number 1, and the y axis represents numbers that cant be seen or held in real life (like negative numbers). for any point above the x axis a modular form is a way of expressing a relation between variables whose geometry can be mapped completely at every point except at points that go to infinity at poles (opposite ends) and not just points that go to infinity in the middle. fuck i described JUST 1 of the 3 conditions needed for a modular form!

  • you guys think a modular form is impossible to explain in one line? its a set of relationships that create .. fuck ive been trying to put it in one line for nearly 10 minutes now :D

  • btw u guys heard of vos savant the highest iq scorer on the childhood test? she wrote a book on wiles' proof being wrong. i always had a mental rivalry with her cuz as a child i got 186 (40 less than hers) on the same test. but all she achieved was a magazine column solving puzzles. anyway the book is hilarious i suggest everyone atleast read a review of it. she rejects proof by contradiction, proof thru axiomatic geometry if its non euclidian and doesnt seem to UNDERSTAND imaginary numbers.

  • @drsaberkhan i read online she later retracted her statement in a reprint, saying fermat's proof of the theorem (which he stated he'd found) would have been euclidian and thats what she was trying to do.. which is crap cuz the book states she believes WILES' version in hyperbolic space is wrong, not that wiles' proof is not what fermat's proof would have looked like. i agree that wiles' proof almost definitely cant be the proof fermat's claimed to have found too many innovations in wiles' proof

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  • @qwertypluss why did you just watch a hour long video...

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  • @qwertypluss you're an absolute idiot.

    Without math you would be living in a cave without any sort of technology you ignorant fool.

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  • @qwertypluss Please, stop, you're embarrassing yourself.

    Firstly, as I stated before, mathematics is used in every aspect of science and technology and the human race would still be in the stone age without it.

    Secondly, mathematicians create the mathematical break-throughs that allow further developments in technology (btw, prime numbers are essential for encrypting and the internet)

    You are obviously an uneducated degenerate because otherwise you would realise it's immense importance.

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  • @qwertypluss hahahaha why you mad though?

    Oh wait, because you're future career highlight is being promoted to branch manager at McDonald's. Oh and I am so offended by that scathing insult of calling me a nerd (at least I'll be earning above the minimum wage when I'm 55)

    Btw, I am not "crying on the internet", rather I was just pointing out to you (on a MATH video) the importance of maths in society. So I hope you have learned a thing or two about maths and the extent of your ignorance.

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  • @qwertypluss hahahah, dude lets be real, you are not studying medicine at Brighton Sussex. And I never said I was a mathematician! You are just some kid in high school (same as me) and I am pointing out to you the uses of mathematics in society after your original comment: "Maths is ugly and useless"

    Seriously, just look at your original comment. That is what I am disagreeing with - mathematics is OBVIOUSLY not useless, unless you have the intelligence of a toad. So relax alright?

  • @qwertypluss continued) Oh and I'd just like to add, as your aspiration in life is to obviously get into a top med school (such as BSMS) then I'd suggest you stop using "nerd" as an insult.

    As getting into BSMS would require good academic skill, so you are either a hypocrite or you have no hope of getting into BSMS.

    Finally, if you were to become a doctor I wonder how you would "diagnose" anything as almost all equipment in a hospital is some sort of technology and required maths to exist..?

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  • @qwertypluss Dude, where did pure mathematics come from? I never said anything about pure math

    Your original statement: "Maths is useless" - I am disagreeing with this exact statement, which is obviously false.

    And are you in grade 8 or 9? Because you should realise that engineering is basically just APPLIED MATH! Yes, that's right, math that has a use! Now, this conclusively proves your original statement wrong.

    Now, don't rebut with "pure maths is shit" "Goldbach... etc" that is irrelevant.

  • @qwertypluss you a med student ? im in thoracic surgery. dont think math is useful? didnt you guys do statistics in community med? the basis of occams razor is probability little bro, i know its annoying but its gonna come in useful when youre an intern and and have to triage with <2 min for ddx. i agree much of pure math is abstract and seems useless. but whats was the point of what watson-crick were doing? or roentgen? historys full of examples of weird uses of seemingly useless research

  • @drsaberkhan math is just the language of logic, the framework of existence. even something as esoteric as poincare's conjecture can be useful in engineering when the vol of a variant-manifold has to be calculated. goldbach's binary conjecture can shed light on how existence is built, if primes as indivisible building blocks, a formula for infinity may be built. i dont think millions shud be spent on it but its curious how ancient stuff came into use later and how recursive history is :)

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  • @qwertypluss neuro rocks, ironically most ppl would agree its the most axiomatic (mathemetical :D) of the specialties. that is, you know the anatomy, the nerves, the physio, and you can just figure out a lot of stuff. now of course u gotta memorize the names of stuff but otherwise its intuitive and i love it. neurosurgery is taxing bro THE MOST i mean 2 teams going 12 hours is not a rarity alright, its pretty tough on the legs. most smart neurosurgs are secretly wearing hosiery to prevent varics

  • @qwertypluss cardio/thoracic, neuro, ER/ICU-these ppl are the rock stars. great variety of pts, ongoing new research = parties and paid seminars :D), cool toys (specially neurosurgery) -ves: hours, stress, pts will die, keeping up with research. nephro/uro is cool. infectious, gastro, endo, these ppl have more free time less overall death rates but more boring. ortho and family med are for retards, and gyne is great only if youre a girl. so neuro rocks IMO but u gotta pay ur dues :)

  • @qwertypluss oh u wanna do psych ? u shud talk 2 some interns hear what they gotta say bout psychiatrists. i am not kidding. worst is they dont start that way, maybe its exposure to patients that does it; btw im doing my MRCP IIs in december and USMLE2 in march id like to get into diagnostic medicine, cuz to be a great in cardio/neuro/int. care u pretty much sacrifice family, girls, hobbies, friends. i decided it wasnt for me.. ure a smart kid to be thinking so early, wish i did at ur stage :)

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  • @qwertypluss im not sure about the UK but in most countries psych attendings need to get evaluated every 2-4 years to see if theyre still competent practicing (aka they havent gone loony themselves). thats why i said dont go ask residents theyre halfway to the asylum :d ask the interns of FY1 ppl, theyll tell you the truth. id say i know or talked to 40+ psych attendings, residents and there is something wrong with all of them. analysing ppl to their face, not wanting to interact socially

  • @qwertypluss no psych isnt useless its got good success recs. but the drugs to deaden patients' minds, so if youre successful you dont get +ve feedback. and every failure as a doctor takes some of your motivation to keep going to the hospital away. in thoracic, i finished a 36h shift, 7/7, 3 discharges, im tired, but happy. we get to see families rejoicing, it feels great when pts and familieis show u that love and appreciation. plus getting to brag in front of residents, hitting on nurses

  • @qwertypluss with psych, the best case scenario is 1/1000 i guess, where the pt and family say `thank you doctor'. most successes are more like `well at least he doesnt have to be admitted tho he is now legally wasted so thanks doc whatever' and when you fail im guessing having to recommend writing up papers to commit someone isnt fun yknow. psych attendings and res's are usually alone, dont socialise much w/ nurses/other docs. theyre respected as doctors not like derma/opthal just not social..

  • @qwertypluss finally NEUROSURGERY is hard work, competitive, long OR hours, cases can be 40 min (burr holes drilling) to 12 hrs, 2 teams working 6-hr shifts. 12 yrs you'll be working 90 hrs/week. neurosurgeons deal with tech a lot (drills, robots, electrodes) + youll always have mortalities. if youre willing to sacrifice, its wonderful. neuroMED, not as taxing, more intuitive, but 40% cases will have morbility no matter what. its challenging, social, innovative, but hard work. i'd recommend it.

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  • @qwertypluss not just neurosurgery bro thoracic as well its 36 on 24 off or 30 on 24 off depending on what lelvel youre at and which subspecialty you take (and which hospital youre in i dont think its quite that way in UK but ill generalise to 80+ anywhere in the world :) neurlogy has morbidities, i think i repeated that a lot. at the same time the research piles up amazingly fast, neurologists get huge opportunities for research and its a very intuititve branch very diagnosis friendly

  • @qwertypluss neuro can be considered boring on the managament side, but its wont drive u nuts like oncology. some stuff is easy dx but ull always have morbiditiies&mortalities, some easy to dx and rx, and neuro is one of the specialties with a diagnosis:cure golden ratio (the hardest ones rarely to diagnose are untreatable, and if u diagnose em right, u'll probably treat or improve the morbidity ratio on many of them). plus many dx'ed untreatable oldtimers (ex CVAs) get turfed to geriartrics :)

  • @drsaberkhan the thing ppl hate about neuro is the m & m's days cuz no matter what you do success rates arent as high as in say thoracic. now if u dont like being judged by peers take fucking derma ophthal ent you wont even need to attend m&ms but ppl will think of those guys as losers.. just kidding we all respect them (no we dont ;P) the worst rotations are psych forensics pathologists (u mustve heard the joke abt the lunatic running the asylum) seriously those folks are just.antisocial, weird

  • @qwertypluss The Goldbach conjecture has no obvious practical use but it's just one problem and does little to support your argument that mathamaticians are "a bunch of losers". Neither does the assertion that you will be earning more than Jimbean (which is just conjecture and lacks proof :-) He appears to be winning the argument quite easily.

    I woke up, scratched my arse and solved it this morning while watching top gear. Only realized it had been done already when I found this video. Pity

  • @qwertypluss But I reckon trying to explain to you why math is important is like trying to explain to a dog why food is important. They don't know why, they just eat it. You're doing the same.

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  • @qwertypluss Those may be useful for proving other theorems. As this video has shown, the Taniyama-Shimura conjecture wasn't proven, but it was still used to prove Fermat's Last Theorem. Now, the Taniyama-Shimura conjecture is fully proven, and is a theory now. Fermat's Last Theorem may not be useful now, but it may be next time. It's like stone-age people finding magnetism and electricity, and wondering what use could they be.

  • @qwertypluss You tell me why the Riemann hypothesis is useful. Go on.

    What may not have applications today (such as the Goldbach or Twin Prime conjectures) may have real consequences tomorrow.

    The Riemann hypothesis, which has been shown the be of use in predicting the distribution of prime numbers, was proposed in 1859, before cryptography was really so concerned with prime numbers. Now, a proof is worth $1M and has grave consequences in the world of information security.

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  • @qwertypluss P vs NP is certainly related, but has much more dire consequences (that integer factorization can be solved in polynomial time).

    However, the Riemann hypothesis can be extended/generalized to allow prime number approximation functions to be deterministic and work in polynomial time. That is, it would allow for primality tests to return a definitive answer within a reasonable amount of time, which would mean that public key systems would be cracked at a much higher rate.

  • @qwertypluss are you honestly saying math is useless? That's just proving yourself an ignorant fool. If you had anything close to a rational thought you'd be embarrassed for saying something so stupid. It's thanks to mathematicians that you're even using a COMPUTER on the INTERNET writing stuff on a WEBPAGE. None of those things could exist without math. Math is the foundation for almost every facett of life. It is your failure to comprehend the abstract that limits you from knowing this.

  • A math professor who does not use a computer, and communicates with collaborating professors via fax. That's cool. It is a form of inefficiency which serves him well.

  • What is the name of the music featured at 26:00 minutes?

  • @allensugar "Perpetuum Mobile" by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra.

  • @dkahn400 Thanks, I was wondering the same thing!

  • It occurs to me, that people with highly organized and well structured mind usually have the most chaotic desk you'll ever see...But of course, this is not even a conjecture :). Just an observation...

  • @ntipouan the ntipouan conjecture, why not?

  • His desk is so organized...

  • @ReverendOhm It's wonderful, isn't it.  :-)

  • @ReverendOhm Bahahaha, the man who is the closest thing I have to a mathematical mentor has a desk that is just slightly more organized. It's marvelous.

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