Why is Riemann's a 'hypothesis' while everyone else's are 'conjectures'?
ctjlewis · x · 2026-09-23
ctjlewis asks a fun math-naming question: why do everyone else's unproven statements get called 'conjectures' while Riemann's is a 'hypothesis'? The distinction is historical — Riemann's 1859 paper used the German word 'Hypothese,' and the label stuck, with no special significance.
More from Fun
- ML author Burkov zings AI hype: 'visionary' claims vs Theranos founder in jail — burkov · 2026-09-23
- Your AI agent ran for 12 hours — but did anyone tell it the brief changed at hour 2? — HaktanSuren · 2026-09-23
- $10M math prize feud draws criticism; commenters point to Terence Tao's take — gerardsans · 2026-09-23
- Critics Slam $10M AI Math Contest Spending, Calling Human vs AI Comparisons Category Mistakes — gerardsans · 2026-09-23
- Meta Muse's first suggested name matches user's childhood dog, raising privacy questions — matt_slotnick · 2026-09-23
- Economist blasts academic fraud culture: defending obvious cheats like Ariely and Gino hurts honest researchers — Afinetheorem · 2026-09-23