Outline and Links for Doron Zeilberger's Cornell Applied Mathematics Colloquium, May 1, 2026

WATCH THE TALK talk poster

Original Title: It is time to reboot Math (and CS)

Original Abstract: Current mainstream math (and theoretical computer science) are the way there are, because they are culminations of random walks by (often very smart) humans, but still human, who need to be able to feel that they are doing something, and so keep generalizing for generalization's sake, and making up artificial minor open problems. Also because they were following the false god of the so-called infinity, went through baroque loops to make things "rigorous" (or so they thought). Most of it is utterly boring, and only of interest to at most 50 living humans. It is high time, to start all over, and do math (and cs) the way they were meant to be.


New Title: Two Cornell PhD alums that I really admire: Freeman Dyson and Neil Sloane

New abstract: Cornell had many notable math PhD alums, but the two that most influenced me (neither of them in math!) were Freeman Dyson (in physics, except that he NEVER got the PhD, he was Mr. Dyson) and Neil Sloane (in Electrical Engineering).


Part I: Freeman Dyson

Dyson's most cited paper

Dyson's 1962 paper

Ken Wilson's proof

J. Gunson's proof

I.J. Good's proof from the book

DZ's Combinatorial Proof of the Dyson Conjecture

Zeilberger-Bressoud Proof of the q-Dyson Conjecture


Part II: Neil Sloane

DZ's Opinion 124

2023 article by NJAS

The Handbook

Neil Sloane's 1967 PhD thesis (the thesis was dedicated to Ann)

Neil Sloane's First Love

Riordan-Sloane 1969 paper


Personal Journal of Shalosh B. Ekhad and Doron Zeilberger

Doron Zeilberger's Home Page