Did Fermat proof the Fermat's Last Theorem?

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SUMMARY

Fermat's Last Theorem, famously noted by Pierre de Fermat in the margin of his copy of Diophantus' Arithmetica, claims he had a proof that was never documented. Historical analysis suggests that it is improbable Fermat possessed a valid proof, as generations of mathematicians have struggled with the theorem. The eventual proof was established by Andrew Wiles, in conjunction with contributions from mathematicians such as Shimura and Taniyama. The ongoing challenge is to discover a simpler proof than Wiles' complex solution.

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  • Awareness of the contributions by Andrew Wiles and the Taniyama-Shimura-Weil conjecture
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Mathematicians, students of number theory, and anyone interested in the historical context and resolution of Fermat's Last Theorem.

newton1
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did fermat proof the Fermat's Last Theorem??
or did he know how to proof it??
what are you think of this??
 
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That margin comment has been the teaser through the centuries. But it is doubtful that generations of fine mathers completely missed something that Fermat got correctly. The history of the problem shows much wreckage of battered hopes for easy solutions to it, so Fermat was probably wrong about having a valid proof. The problem now, following the solution by Wiles, Shimura, Taniyama and a bunch of other mathers, is to find a solution that is at least somewhat easier than this.

link --->
PBS Nova: the Proof - TVSCRIPT

The public seldom gets this much chance to see topnotch mathers talking over something important in almost understandable terms.

---

'mathers' is just my personal slang for 'mathematicians'; no insults intended.
 
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