[seqfan] Re: L'OEIS

[Ron Hardin]

151. But there is also *this* use of the word to know: we say Now I know! - and similarly Now I can do it! and Now I understand!

Let us imagine the following example: A writes a series of numbers down; B watches him and tries to find a law for the sequence of numbers. If he succeeds he exclaims: Now I can go on! - So this capacity, this understanding, is something that makes its appearance in a moment. So let us try and see what it is that makes its appearance here. - A has written down the numbers 1, 5, 11, 19, 29; at this point B says he knows how to go on. What happened here? Various things may have happened; for example, while A was slowly putting one number after another, B was occupied with trying various algebraic formulae on the numbers which had been written down. After A had written the number 19 B tried the formula a(n) = n^2 + n - 1; and the next number confirmed his hypothesis.

- Wittgenstein, _Philosoophical Investigations_, starting a sequence of sequence thought-experiments rhhardin at mindspring.com rhhardin at att.net (either)