@nilesh@fosstodon.org @drScott@mathstodon.xyz @tao@mathstodon.xyz I feel you're missing one more reason that I do feel Tao's post touched on. It's not a formal reason, but more of a practical one: The system of mathematicians just practically doesn't really explore the search space of dead end paths after a path to a solution already has been found. The reasons for this can be multiple, perhaps incentive structures at an institutional level, or perhaps personal motivations not aligning or otherwise. Tao argue that this process is necessary, however, for important discovery and understanding. This is my understanding at least.