What is wrong with the "proof"? Claim: All cats have the same fur Proof: By induction on n, the number of cats. If n = 1, then there is only one cat, so only one fur, so it’s trivially the same fur as itself. Now suppose that the statement is true for k − 1 cats, and we’ll show it holds for k cats. Line the cats up, and consider the first k − 1 cats. By the inductive hypothesis, they must have the same fur. Now consider the last k − 1 cats. Again, they must have the same fur. But the cats in the middle couldn’t have changed fur, so all k cats must have the same fur.
What is wrong with the "proof"? Claim: All cats have the same fur Proof: By induction on n, the number of cats. If n = 1, then there is only one cat, so only one fur, so it’s trivially the same fur as itself. Now suppose that the statement is true for k − 1 cats, and we’ll show it holds for k cats. Line the cats up, and consider the first k − 1 cats. By the inductive hypothesis, they must have the same fur. Now consider the last k − 1 cats. Again, they must have the same fur. But the cats in the middle couldn’t have changed fur, so all k cats must have the same fur.
College Algebra (MindTap Course List)
12th Edition
ISBN:9781305652231
Author:R. David Gustafson, Jeff Hughes
Publisher:R. David Gustafson, Jeff Hughes
Chapter8: Sequences, Series, And Probability
Section8.5: Mathematical Induction
Problem 42E
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What is wrong with the "proof"?
Claim: All cats have the same fur
Proof: By induction on n, the number of cats. If n = 1, then there
is only one cat, so only one fur, so it’s trivially the same fur as
itself.
Now suppose that the statement is true for k − 1 cats, and we’ll
show it holds for k cats. Line the cats up, and consider the first
k − 1 cats. By the inductive hypothesis, they must have the same fur. Now consider the last k − 1 cats. Again, they must have the same fur. But the cats in the middle couldn’t have changed fur,
so all k cats must have the same fur.
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