1 Mar
2014
1 Mar
'14
12:04 a.m.
Yeah, it’s as simple as that. The definition of the existence and, if so, of the value of an infinite sum is very well-established in math. If you mean something different, how hard is it to say as much? —Dan On Feb 28, 2014, at 6:03 PM, James Propp <jamespropp@gmail.com> wrote:
Dan, can you say more about why you object to using the equation 1+2+3+4+...=-1/12 in this way? Is this equation, for you, exactly as objectionable as (say) 1+2+4+8+...=-1, and for the exact same reason?
And is that reason the conviction that "1+2+3+4+..." must (in the absence of side explanations) connote the limit (in Cauchy's sense) of 1+2+...+n as n goes to infinity?