My recent research uses the on-line collaborative proofs developed in
the polymath initiative, led by Gowers and Tao, for an empirical study
of mathematical collaboration. While the original motivation for the
work was to extend the support oered by computer aided proof, in
this talk I will outline some of the results about mathematical practice
obtained in by working with social scientists, philosophers and computer
scientists. I will focusing in particular on ideas of cra and landscape that
are emerging in studying the proof process.
e project is supported by EPSRC and collaborators include Andrew
Aberdein (Florida), Joe Corneli (Edinburgh), Chris Hollings (Oxford)
Lorenzo Lane (Oxford) Laura Meagher (Edinburgh), Alison Pease
(Dundee) and Fenner Tanswell (Oxford).