The Subtle Art of the Mathematical Conjecture

"In a perverse way, the refutation of a great conjecture can be even better news than its success, since the failure makes clear that our imagined map of the mathematical world is seriously wrong. Defeat can be productive, the reverse of a Pyrrhic victory."

In a column for Quanta Magazine, Robbert Dijkgraaf, Director and Leon Levy Professor, celebrates the mathematical conjecture, covering how conjectures are proven, what makes a particular conjecture great, and the essential role conjecture plays in the advancement of mathematics.

Read more at Quanta Magazine.