Friday Wrap-up

A small mix of some of what I didn't cover over at Math-Frolic this week:

1)  What's in a name, when it comes to a mathematical conjecture?... Michael Harris thinks out loud a bit:
https://mathematicswithoutapologies.wordpress.com/2016/05/21/the-taniyama-shimura-weil-controversy-in-herts/

2)  As easy as ABC... a problem from Presh Talwalkar:
http://mindyourdecisions.com/blog/2016/05/22/aa-bb-cc-abc-sunday-puzzle/

...and here, an oddball problem from 7puzzleblog:
http://7puzzleblog.com/147/

3)  Very deep article centered around Ramsey theory from Natalie Wolchover over at Quanta, that ultimately touches on these questions:
“To what extent is mathematics actually talking about anything real? [Is it] talking about some abstract world that’s far from the real world around us? Or does mathematics ultimately have its roots in reality?”:
https://www.quantamagazine.org/20160524-mathematicians-bridge-finite-infinite-divide/

This is a 'sl-o-o-ow' and abstract read that requires a lot of focus and thought (there's also a comment in the comments section from "Peter" that I think helps clarify several points.)

4)  Christian Lawson-Perfect offered up his own personal list of "interesting esoterica" links (related to math) this week (this could keep you occupied for awhile):
http://read.somethingorotherwhatever.com/

5)  Ben Orlin sends me rolling on the floor again (and the carpet burns are getting serious):
https://mathwithbaddrawings.com/2016/05/25/where-does-your-college-tuition-go/

6)  This from Mathematician-Musician-Modular Arithmetic Maven Evelyn Lamb:
http://tinyurl.com/hwny9gy

...and some more advanced "math" (largest proof ever!) from Dr. Lamb here (h/t Egan Chernoff):
http://www.nature.com/news/two-hundred-terabyte-maths-proof-is-largest-ever-1.19990
 
7)  I took a quick look at John Stillwell's new book "Elements of Mathematics" a couple days ago:
http://mathtango.blogspot.com/2016/05/quick-book-blurb.html

8)  Of course you can always count on finding beaucoup math each week at Mike's Math Page:
https://mikesmathpage.wordpress.com/

Finally, I ought not let the week pass without noting that Raymond Smullyan celebrated his 97th birthday on Wednesday... and that's the truth.


Potpourri BONUS! (extra NON-mathematical links of interest):

1)  DNA and forensics... not infallible:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/when-dna-implicates-the-innocent/

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/06/a-reasonable-doubt/480747/

2)  And from the Dept. of Weird Traffic News (the ingenuity of humans trying to solve a problem never ceases to amaze):
http://inhabitat.com/china-to-test-insane-traffic-straddling-bus-this-summer/