Identities in search of identity
This is a funny but very readable paper. The author proposes to start a new science called ``Identity Science''. Quoting from the paper ``In it identies will be studied for their own sake, and one will try to use the minimum amount of concepts, at least of concepts from other parts of mathematics. Group-theoretical, combinatorial and other conceptual and insightful proofs will be bounded, \textit{except} when there is hope of stripping the foreign concepts away. This fanaticism will serve a very important purpose. I believe, with Hemingway, that \textit{less is more}, and with modern painters and composers that \textit{extreme ugliness is beautiful}. By the same token, my insistence on ``no conceptual proofs please'' is based on the following hope: COMPLETE LACK OF INSIGHT WILL LEAD TO NEW KIND OF IDENTITIES.'' Examples of families of identities (drawn from the authors' personal experience) are rated according to whether they are \textit{utterly trivial}, \textit{trivial but expensive}, \textit{trivial in principle}, and \textit{not yet trivial} identities.
scientific article; zbMATH DE number 438319
scientific article