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How the “Frontier” Became the Slogan of Uncontrolled AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been billed as the next frontier of humanity: the newly available expanse whose exploration …
From Computational Complexity
Matrix Mult (you heard it here... third?)
(INNOVATIONS CONFERENCE: here) (While preparing this two other bloggers wrote on the same topic, Scott here and Lipton/Regan here. Our slogan: Complexity Blog...
From Computational Complexity
Are these journals real?
Consider the following email I got: Dear Professor, 1. Antarctica Journal of Mathematics 2. ArchimedesJournal of Mathematics 3. BesselJournal of Mathematics...
From Computational Complexity
My response to the Gasarch P vs NP poll
A while back GASARCH solicited responses to a P vs NP poll and gave Oct 31 as the deadline. Now that the deadline is passed I post my answers. Does P=NP? IIf...
From Computational Complexity
Theorems that are impressive at first but then....
Mission Impossible was my favorite show as a kid. As an adult it would not make my top 20, and I wonder why I liked it so much as a kid. (Actually I do know- at...
From Computational Complexity
If Bill Tweeted what would he tweet (Steve Jobs Edition)
A more nuanced view of Steve Jobs: here. A less nuanced view of Steve Jobs: here. The next Steve Jobs: here A very nice NON-Steve Jobs post here. Is thisAndrew...
From Computational Complexity
If you find a mistake in someone elses paper you should....
What do you do if you read a paper or book and find mistakes in it? My first impulse is to say: Email the author. Always be polite and admit (which is true) that...
From Computational Complexity
A candidate for a new Millenium Problem
In a prior post I wrote that the Erdos-Turan Conjecture should be a Millennium problem. Today I am going to (1) suggest a generalization of the Erdos-Turan Conjecture...
From Computational Complexity
Where do theorems go to die?
(Joint post by Bill Gasarch and Daniel Apon) Recently I (Daniel) reviewed Dexter Kozen's Theory of Computation (it was AWESOME). You can find the review here...
From Computational Complexity
Conventions in Math- just to make the rules work or more?
Why is a1/2 = sqrt(a)? true? To make the rule ax+y=ax a y work out. Why is (∀ x ∈ ∅)[P(x)] true? To make the rule (∀ x ∈ A ∪ B)[P(x)] iff (∀ x ∈ A)[P(x)]...
From Computational Complexity
Guest Post on Conference Locations
(Samir Khuller Guest Post.) On Conference Locations: I recently looked at Orbitz for fares to Japan for SODA 2012 in Jan. The round trip fare from DC to...
From Computational Complexity
Next in the sequence
When I posted on sequence problems here some people said that they did not have unique answers. Many problems FORMALLY do not have a unique answer, but common sense...
From Computational Complexity
Knowing some History is a good thing- Why?
(FOCS registration is open: here. Note that there are tutorials on Sat Oct 22 and the conference talks are Sun Oct 23-Tues Oct 25.) (Guest post by By Jeffery...
From Computational Complexity
Do we use Technology before its perfected? Should we?
During Hurricane Irene I lost power for about 18 hours. I was actually pleased how short this was. PEPCO (my power company) did not tell us when power would beprior...
From Computational Complexity
What inspired you to work on... whatever you work on?
Grad students often wonder how people get ideas of things to work on. The usual advice I give is (1) go to talks, (2) read papers, (3) talk to people, (4) follow...
From Computational Complexity
An application of Ramsey Theory to Proving Programs Terminate
B. Cook, Podelski, and Rybalchenko have done both practical and theoretical work on proving that programs terminate. They use Ramsey's Theorem (Yeah!). Jon Katz...
From Computational Complexity
What is a simple function?
In my discrete Math course I asked the following question: For each of the following sequences find a simple function a(n) such that the sequence is a(1), a(2)...
From Computational Complexity
If I was a tweeter (is that a word?)
Since Lance is not tweeting this week, I will take up the slack. So, here is my once-in-a-while post If I tweeted AND if tweets didn't have to be so short, here...
From Computational Complexity
Does STOC/FOCS take simple-nice-ideas papers? A one-element case study
WRITTEN AUG 1,2011: It has been said that simple innovative ideas to not get into STOC/FOCS and only hard technical improvements do. This is one of the motivations...
From Computational Complexity
Why did 1+1=2 take Russell and Whitehead 300 pages?
In my post about the myth that Logicians are crazy I mentioned in passing that Whitehead and Russell spend 300 pages proving 1+1=2 (but were both sane). Two people...
From Computational Complexity