Line Edslev Andersen publishes "Acceptable gaps in mathematical proofs"
Syntese, vol. 197, pp. 233–247 (2020)
Abstract
Mathematicians often intentionally leave gaps in their proofs. Based on interviews with mathematicians about their refereeing practices, this paper examines the character of intentional gaps in published proofs. We observe that mathematicians’ refereeing practices limit the number of certain intentional gaps in published proofs. The results provide some new perspectives on the traditional philosophical questions of the nature of proof and of what grounds mathematical knowledge.