Math with Bad DrawingsCartoon Archive

Murder for 'Proof'

November 7, 2017

A murder suspect insists that only mathematical proof counts, not evidence, and turns out to have killed over misuse of the word 'proof.'

Content note: Murder theme (comic); threat of violence.

Use this cartoon

Free for classrooms, worksheets, slides and other non-commercial use under CC BY-NC 4.0, with credit to Ben Orlin.

Cartoon by Ben Orlin, Math with Bad Drawings. https://cartoons.mathwithbaddrawings.com/2017-11-07-murder-for-proof/ (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Transcript

Detective: "You're the murderer, and I have the evidence to prove it!"

Suspect: "Evidence can't prove anything. Only axiomatic reasoning is true proof."

Detective: "We have fingerprints, eleven witnesses, high-definition video, and a Facebook status in which you accused the victim of abusing mathematical vocabulary before declaring 'Now I shall do murder.'" Detective: "I'd call that proof."

Suspect: "Don't make me kill again."

Topics
Logic & Proof › Proofs & TheoremsLogic & Proof › Logic & ReasoningMath Culture › Vocabulary & Notation
Level
High SchoolCollege
Themes
MathematiciansLanguage & WordplayEveryday Life