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From: hardy@mystic.stat.umn.edu (Michael Hardy)
Subject: Re: The Flight from Truth
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Date: Fri, 28 Jul 1995 23:27:28 GMT
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In article <3v911h$jim@mars.efn.org>,
			el shagon <shag@buddha.shagnet.net> wrote:


>but are we addressing ANY set of axioms? that is, is any exploring
>the i implications of any set of axioms automatically mathematical?


	Not if you don't mean by "axiom" what is meant by that term in
mathematics.  In common language an "axiom" is a self-evident proposition,
e.g., my knowledge of the fact that I am conscious is an axiom; it is
something that I cannot doubt.

	That is _NOT_ what the word "axiom" means in mathematics.


	I am quite reluctant to get into a discussion of this right now.
But take a look at my post in which I attempted to clarify what a "graph"
is in the context of graph theory, and if you're really interested, take
a look at some of the readings I suggested earlier.  Another thing
accessible to people who know little math is an article on algebraic
theory of knots in Scientific American that ran in either June 1978 or
June 1979.


	Mike Hardy

Michael Hardy                   	"If you come to a fork
School of Statistics             	 in the road, take it."
University of Minnesota
hardy@stat.umn.edu					-- Yogi Berra
