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michael atiyah at 89 claimed to prove the riemann hypothesis in a 5 page paper
| Lionel Tiger | 01/12/26 |
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Date: January 12th, 2026 4:47 PM Author: Lionel Tiger In the world of high-level mathematics, where proofs for major conjectures are usually hundreds of pages of dense, grueling logic (like Andrew Wiles’ 129-page proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem), Atiyah’s attempt was essentially the mathematical equivalent of a "magic trick."
The "ridiculousness" of it boils down to three main things:
1. The "Slide 16" Problem
Atiyah stood before a room of the world’s most elite young mathematicians and, after about 35 minutes of talking about his autobiography and history, he put up a single slide. He claimed that this one slide contained the entire proof.
To a mathematician, this was like a physicist claiming they’ve built a warp drive, and then showing a slide of a paper airplane. The proof was so short that if it were correct, it meant that thousands of the smartest people in history—Euler, Gauss, Riemann himself—had somehow missed something that could be written on a cocktail napkin.
2. The "Todd Function" Nonsense
The "engine" of his proof was something he called the Todd Function. He gave it properties that are mathematically impossible.
He claimed it was a "polynomial on every compact set."
The Glaring Error: In basic complex analysis (the kind taught to 19-year-old undergraduates), there is a rule called the Identity Theorem. It states that if a smooth function is a polynomial on even a tiny patch, it is that exact same polynomial everywhere.
This meant his "magical" function was actually just a boring, simple polynomial. It’s like claiming you have a "magic car" that can fly, but when people look at it, they realize it’s just a bicycle with a "Fly" sticker on it.
3. Calculating the Fine-Structure Constant
Perhaps the most "ridiculous" part to scientists was his claim that he had derived the Fine-Structure Constant (α≈1/137) from pure mathematics.
In physics, α is a measured value. It’s a "messy" number from the real world that changes slightly depending on how much energy you use to measure it.
Atiyah claimed he had a formula that spat out this number exactly, with no physics involved. This is a level of "numerology" that most scientists find absurd. It would be like a mathematician claiming they proved the Riemann Hypothesis and, as a side effect, figured out the exact weight of every cat in London.
The Cringe Factor (The "Respectful Silence")
The most uncomfortable part was the reaction. Because Michael Atiyah was a literal living god of mathematics, the audience didn't boo or laugh. They sat in a "horrified, respectful silence."
The Press: The general news media (like The Times and The Guardian) ran headlines like "90-year-old genius solves $1 million puzzle!"
The Mathematicians: On forums like MathOverflow, experts were quietly telling each other, "Please, let’s just not talk about this." They wanted to protect his legacy from his own final, failed ambition. |