The mathematician and the oracle

On August 24, Levent Alpöge (@__alpoge__) posted on X.com that they had solved a maths problem with Claude’s help in a way that was contrary to a human proof of it, albeit a reputedly unsatisfactory one. Let us set aside the validity of the new proof. In one reply to the post, @CircumjovialLLC asked @__alpoge__ to stop using Claude models that were not available to everyone to solve advanced maths problems. Another account, @techlarper_, then replied implying that this argument does not make sense because, since the human brain is like a ‘closed model’ to which each person has access, @CircumjovialLLC’s argument is akin to asking smarter people to not solve tough maths problems, or to at least refrain from doing so unless they could explain their thinking. Maybe @techlarper_ is a bot, maybe @CircumjovialLLC is too. I do not care. I think @techlarper_’s argument is mistaken and that @CircumjovialLLC is right to ask for what they did. Say Selvi is an exceptionally good mathematician who…