Proof by Accident: The Art of Math

Mathematicians are like detectives, but instead of solving crimes, we solve proofs. Or do we?

The Story of Proof by Accident

In the world of math, proofs are like puzzles. You start with some axioms, and then you add some lemmas, theorems, and maybe a few lemmas-in-the-lemmas. And then, voilà! You have a proof!

But what happens when the proof is not quite what it seems? When the theorem is actually just a coincidence? That's when you have a proof by accident.

Examples of Proof by Accident

• The Five Colorful Theorem: A proof that was supposed to prove the five color theorem but ended up just proving that the colors were actually just five.
• The Collatz Conjecture: A proof that was supposed to prove the Collatz Conjecture but ended up just proving that the conjecture was actually just a conjecture.

Subpages

Want to learn more about proof by accident? Check out:

• The Theory of Accidental Proofs
• Proof by Accident in Practice

Or, if you want to see some of our favorite math jokes, visit:

• Math Jokes