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← Formal methods are not used everywhere because for most real problems…
17 connected korrents · 12 moments on record from 21 Jan 2019 to 29 Jul 2026.
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formal proof Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: Formal methods are not used everywhere because for most real problems writing down what the function should do is itself a nightmare, and a program that is right ninety-nine per cent of the time is good enough. Formal methods are not used everywhere because for most real problems writing down what the function should do is itself a nightmare, and a program that is right ninety-nine per cent of the time is good enough. Last stated a month ago
29 Jul 2026
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2026-07-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Engineers are sceptical of formal methods because they were burned by CASE and UML, sold as miracle solutions and imposed on them regardless of fit. — tap to centre the map on it Engineers are sceptical of formal methods because they were burned by CASE and UML, sold as miracle solutions and imposed on them regardless of fit. Last stated a month ago
29 Jul 2026
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2026-07-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Formal methods shine in highly computational domains and struggle wherever the problem is embedded in human business behaviour. — tap to centre the map on it Formal methods shine in highly computational domains and struggle wherever the problem is embedded in human business behaviour. Last stated a month ago
29 Jul 2026
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2026-07-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Formal methods are not standard practice even in high-assurance software such as medical devices and aircraft. — tap to centre the map on it Formal methods are not standard practice even in high-assurance software such as medical devices and aircraft. Last stated 8 years ago
21 Jan 2019
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2019-01-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Formal methods are a niche tool; property-based testing is the one most engineers should adopt, and stopping there is a fine place to stop. — tap to centre the map on it Formal methods are a niche tool; property-based testing is the one most engineers should adopt, and stopping there is a fine place to stop. Last stated a month ago
29 Jul 2026
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2026-07-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: AI is making formal methods more popular without making them mainstream, moving them from about a tenth of a per cent of engineers to three tenths. — tap to centre the map on it AI is making formal methods more popular without making them mainstream, moving them from about a tenth of a per cent of engineers to three tenths. Last stated a month ago
29 Jul 2026
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2026-07-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The hard part of verification is not proving the code correct but working out what the specification should say. — tap to centre the map on it The hard part of verification is not proving the code correct but working out what the specification should say. Last stated 8 years ago
21 Jan 2019
HW
Hillel Wayne — holds since 2019-01-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Large language models do not reason formally: their performance collapses as a problem is made bigger, in the way a calculator's never does. — tap to centre the map on it Large language models do not reason formally: their performance collapses as a problem is made bigger, in the way a calculator's never does. Last stated 2 years ago
11 Oct 2024
GM
Gary Marcus — holds since 2024-10-11 — tap for who they are
Same subject: The programming practices taught as best practice are ruinous for performance and should not be followed. — tap to centre the map on it The programming practices taught as best practice are ruinous for performance and should not be followed. Last stated 4 years ago
28 Feb 2023
CM
Casey Muratori — holds since 2023-02-28 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A language model is no substitute for a well-specified conventional algorithm, so it cannot simply be dropped into a complex problem and trusted. — tap to centre the map on it A language model is no substitute for a well-specified conventional algorithm, so it cannot simply be dropped into a complex problem and trusted. Last stated a year ago
7 Jun 2025
GM
Gary Marcus — holds since 2025-06-07 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A language model is not using language at all, because language requires an intention to communicate. — tap to centre the map on it A language model is not using language at all, because language requires an intention to communicate. Last stated 2 years ago
31 Aug 2024
TC
Ted Chiang — holds since 2024-08-31 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A language model's apparent mind is mostly our own bias: it predicts text, and leverages our evolved habit of attributing intentionality to anything that acts human. — tap to centre the map on it A language model's apparent mind is mostly our own bias: it predicts text, and leverages our evolved habit of attributing intentionality to anything that acts human. Last stated 2 years ago
22 Apr 2024
SC
Sean Carroll — holds since 2024-04-22 — tap for who they are
Same subject: AI-written code makes formal proof necessary, because human review of all that generated code becomes the bottleneck. — tap to centre the map on it AI-written code makes formal proof necessary, because human review of all that generated code becomes the bottleneck. Last stated 5 months ago
22 Apr 2026
MK
Martin Kleppmann — holds since 2026-04-22 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Formal verification is about to become economical, because models are getting good enough at writing the proofs that humans no longer have to. — tap to centre the map on it Formal verification is about to become economical, because models are getting good enough at writing the proofs that humans no longer have to. Last stated 5 months ago
22 Apr 2026
MK
Martin Kleppmann — holds since 2026-04-22 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Formalising a proof in Lean currently takes about ten times the effort of writing it out: doable, but annoying. — tap to centre the map on it Formalising a proof in Lean currently takes about ten times the effort of writing it out: doable, but annoying. Last stated a year ago
14 Jun 2025
TT
Terence Tao — holds since 2025-06-14 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A company's staff-engineer bar should be set against the best companies in the industry rather than against its own history, which is what makes title inflation a real cost. — tap to centre the map on it A company's staff-engineer bar should be set against the best companies in the industry rather than against its own history, which is what makes title inflation a real cost. Last stated 5 months ago
1 Apr 2026
TP
Thuan Pham — holds since 2026-04-01 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A crewed rocket cannot be made safe by making the booster reliable, so the only real way to improve safety is to carry an escape system. — tap to centre the map on it A crewed rocket cannot be made safe by making the booster reliable, so the only real way to improve safety is to carry an escape system. Last stated 3 years ago
14 Dec 2023
JB
Jeff Bezos — holds since 2023-12-14 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A monopolist that can no longer grow by winning new users can only grow by making its product worse for the users it already has. — tap to centre the map on it A monopolist that can no longer grow by winning new users can only grow by making its product worse for the users it already has. Last stated 3 years ago
28 Jul 2023
CD
Cory Doctorow — holds since 2023-07-28 — tap for who they are
At the centre
Formal methods are not used everywhere because for most real problems writing down what the function should do is itself a nightmare, and a program that is right ninety-nine per cent of the time is good enough.
Holds HW Hillel WayneRead this korrent →
Engineers are sceptical of formal methods because they were burned by CASE and UML, sold as miracle solutions and imposed on them regardless of fit.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
Formal methods shine in highly computational domains and struggle wherever the problem is embedded in human business behaviour.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
Formal methods are not standard practice even in high-assurance software such as medical devices and aircraft.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
Formal methods are a niche tool; property-based testing is the one most engineers should adopt, and stopping there is a fine place to stop.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
AI is making formal methods more popular without making them mainstream, moving them from about a tenth of a per cent of engineers to three tenths.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
The hard part of verification is not proving the code correct but working out what the specification should say.
Holds HW Hillel Wayne
Large language models do not reason formally: their performance collapses as a problem is made bigger, in the way a calculator's never does.
Holds GM Gary Marcus
The programming practices taught as best practice are ruinous for performance and should not be followed.
Holds CM Casey Muratori
A language model is no substitute for a well-specified conventional algorithm, so it cannot simply be dropped into a complex problem and trusted.
Holds GM Gary Marcus
A language model is not using language at all, because language requires an intention to communicate.
Holds TC Ted Chiang
A language model's apparent mind is mostly our own bias: it predicts text, and leverages our evolved habit of attributing intentionality to anything that acts human.
Holds SC Sean Carroll
AI-written code makes formal proof necessary, because human review of all that generated code becomes the bottleneck.
Holds MK Martin Kleppmann
Formal verification is about to become economical, because models are getting good enough at writing the proofs that humans no longer have to.
Holds MK Martin Kleppmann
Formalising a proof in Lean currently takes about ten times the effort of writing it out: doable, but annoying.
Holds TT Terence Tao
A company's staff-engineer bar should be set against the best companies in the industry rather than against its own history, which is what makes title inflation a real cost.
Holds TP Thuan Pham
A crewed rocket cannot be made safe by making the booster reliable, so the only real way to improve safety is to carry an escape system.
Holds JB Jeff Bezos
A monopolist that can no longer grow by winning new users can only grow by making its product worse for the users it already has.
Holds CD Cory Doctorow