Chicken vs. Egg Challenge
The chicken/egg challenge:
Challenge 3. (From Class 8) Apparently, people were not entirely convinced by my
proof sketch in class that the egg came before the chicken. So, we’ll
make it a challenge problem to write the best proof that answers the
question of “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” (That is, you
can either prove the egg came first, or prove the chicken came first).
A convincing proof would need to include clear definitions of “chicken”
and “egg”, and use inference rules, as well as axioms based on
biological assumptions (clearly stated), to make an irrefutable argument
supporting your position.
The challenge remains a conundrum, but several promising answers have been received:
- Tony Yang’s Proof that the Chicken Came First (★ ★)
- Milan Bharadwaj’s Proof that Neither Came First (★ ★ ★)
- Jesse Alloy’s Proof that the Egg Came First (★)
- Brian Li’s Proof that the Egg Came First (★)
All of these are interesting answers, worthy of some bonus credit, but none completely close the debate. (I’ll provide my alternative proof in Class 11.)