In a 2002 poll of 100 researchers, 61 believed the answer is no, 9 believed the answer is yes, 22 were unsure, and 8 believed the question may be independent of the currently accepted axioms, and so impossible to prove or disprove.
What do you think and why?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%3DNP
2006-06-20 09:12:37 · 15 answers · asked by hq3 6 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
To l00kiehereu, i do not ask you to PROVE it either way, just your thoughts.
2006-06-20 09:26:22 · update #1
To xtragicallyx: Going with majority is shaky, 2500 years ago majority thought that earth was flat.
Also, it WILL affect you personally. For example, when you purchase things online your credit card number is encrypted. Breaking that encryption is NP-Hard. But if P=NP, then the problem is solvable in P, meaning fast, and the encryption would no longer be good, this will be a sever blow to on-line commerce, which you probably use.
2006-06-20 09:29:18 · update #2
P is not equal to NP
In all promplems that require a solution one must be conscious of the real world. If P is what it is, then Np could not be P. Within the context of your referance it is apparent that P and NP are not the same. For something to be the same it would have to be mirrored and then it could be argued that one is negative and the other positive. The question could only have relative value if there was a differance in logic.
2006-06-26 03:58:54 · answer #1 · answered by einstein 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I wish I had the answer because if I did, then I would be a millionaire. However, there are many past examples of open ended questions like this that were eventually proven to be independent of the given set of axioms. The infinity continuum hypothesis for one, and a few examples in topology that were left unresolved until 100 years later it was found to be independent of the given axioms. I personally believe that if a problem has taken so long with so much work having been done, then there is a very good chance that the answer to the question is independent of the current axiomatic system being used.
2006-06-20 22:00:23 · answer #2 · answered by Stochastic 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
White is ALL color = P
Black is absence of color = NP (or visa versa)
and in the middle dividing the two you have Clear.
This type of bullshit is exactly why our world and human beings are so messed up and will continue to remain that way! Things which are so very simplistic are examined to the point where they actually become changed and mutated into something else.... most often with little or no real value or worth what so ever!
Asking such questions and the desire to learn is wonderful.... A far better question for us all is: What can I do today to help make this world a better place for "all" that exist on it?
2006-06-29 01:39:15 · answer #3 · answered by Izen G 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only if P equals zero or N equals 1.
As for encryption, nothing is perfectly random and repeatable, so the encryption is designed to be flawed. It is only there to make you have to work for your theft. The longer it takes to break the encryption the easier to locate the person doing so.
2006-07-03 08:08:10 · answer #4 · answered by LORD Z 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm sure that while this may be one of world's greatest unsolved mathematical mysteries, how would it affect me personally? Or anyone, for that matter?
I'm going to say that the answer is no. And I say that because it is the answer favored by the majority and more often than not, the majority is correct when it comes to these sorts of things.
2006-06-20 16:21:15 · answer #5 · answered by xtragicallyxbeautifulx 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Given the complexity of the problem, I suspect you will not find a definitive answer on Yahoo! Answers. However, it is my suspicion, based on what little I learned from a cursory read of the article in Wikipedia, that our current language, philosophical, and mathematical contexts are too small to answer this question.
2006-07-04 13:29:46 · answer #6 · answered by Loopmeister 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
P=NP
Nothing can be more or less than its opposite, so in absolute terms, both are equal. P is everything P is, and NP is everything P is not. Both define what P is and what P is not. There is no P without NP, so they both have equal value.
2006-07-03 03:04:03 · answer #7 · answered by poetickc 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To ME what you are asking is:
Is A=Z?
I say NO, because A is the BEGINNING, and Z is the END!
N COULD be equal to NP----> BUT ONLY if P=1
2006-07-03 10:00:33 · answer #8 · answered by thewordofgodisjesus 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your asking if the # of problems, are equal to the # of solved problems then no I dont think so, because for every solved problem theres 3 unsolved (_)
2006-06-20 16:18:34 · answer #9 · answered by Derrick 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's not fair! You're trying to win the million bucks by having someone else solve it for you!
2006-06-20 16:18:57 · answer #10 · answered by l00kiehereu 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋