Godel's Proof Title Page

In 1931 Kurt Godeł published a revolutionary paper—one that challenged certain basie assumptions underlying much tradi-tional research in mathematics and logie. Today his exploration of terra incognito has been recognized as one of the major con-tributions to modern scientific thought.

Here is the first book to present a readable explanation to both scholars and non-specialists of the main ideas, the broad implications of Gódel's proof. It offers any educated person with a taste for logie and philosophy the chance to gain genuine insight into a previously inaccessible subject.

In this new edition, Pulitzer prize-winning author Douglas R. Hofstadter has reviewed and updated the text of this classic work, clarifying ambiguities, making arguments clearer, and making the text morę accessible. He has also added a new Fore-word, which reveals his own unique personal connection to this seminal work and the impact it has had on his own professional life, explains the essence of Gódel's proof, and shows how and why G6del's proof remains relevant today.

Godel's

Proof

Revised Edition by

Ernest Nagel and

James R. Newman

Edited and with a Ne w Foreword by Douglas R. Hofstadter

n

New York University Press New York and London