13 Nov
2011
13 Nov
'11
1:28 p.m.
On 13 Nov 2011 at 12:04, Marc LeBrun wrote:
Could anyone supply me with elementary examples that illustrate the idea of a non-constructive proof, for those with a "Martin Gardner reader" level of mathematical sophistication that also has a not-too-trivial but reasonably easily-verified case?
How about the existence of irrational numbers? The classic proof that sqrt(2) cannot be rational shows the existence of such numbers, but says essentially nothing about how to find more or how many of them there are, etc. /Bernie\ -- Bernie Cosell Fantasy Farm Fibers mailto:bernie@fantasyfarm.com Pearisburg, VA --> Too many people, too few sheep <--