[madaxe_again]

I thought this would be something interesting, like the Sapir whorf hypothesis applied to mathematical reasoning - but no, it’s just the old classic professor/journal editor playing silly buggers in his power-tripping dotage scenario.

[bananaflag]

Yeah, it's ironic how math is more or less the one "universal" truth, and we still long for somehow magically make it culturally dependent. I can definitely understand that temptation. Like the opposite one, e.g. the search for a "perfect" language (as in e.g. Umberto Eco's book). Both temptations are examples of a longing for an actual paradox or absurdity in the world.

[molf]

Totally get your point, but math is still a human creation. The symbols, language, and frameworks we use are cultural, and disagreement over proofs like this one shows math depends on shared understanding, not just objective truth.

[bananaflag]

I definitely agree with that. But that is a pale cultural dependence compared to what one would wish for.