The appendix supplements the content excluded from "the nature of answers," which mathematicians and programmers believe is best presented separately after some discussion.
Problem Statement#
Examples#
- "The meaning of my life is to watch MyGo," said the overly excited painter after trying alcoholic coffee for the first time, and while watching a video making strange noises, he muttered with a grin, "All I can think about is myself," "Form a band for a lifetime," "I'll be the one to end it," and other incomprehensible ramblings.
- "The meaning of watching this anime is to go crazy, and going crazy is for happiness. Treating the pursuit of happiness as the meaning of life is truly meaningless." The screenwriter said while taking a sip of bitter American coffee, "These things are just like eating; after you're full, you get hungry again, and it cycles endlessly without meaning. What use is that?"
- "Doesn't that mean all our motivation, even the world in front of us, is meaningless?" The programmer took a sip of his latte and frowned at its sweetness, retorting, "Since all of this is meaningless, then helping us pay the bill shouldn't be a problem for you, so please help us with that later."
- Thus, the screenwriter and the programmer began to argue, "Lame!" the painter shouted, starting to go even crazier, straining his voice to yell, "なんで春日影やったの！", and then began to sing in Japanese.
- "Alright, let's clarify the essence of this problem," the mathematician paused his study of Kongming's chess and said, "The programmers' rebuttal does not address the root of the issue. They find that the continuous pursuit of meaning yields nothing, so everything is meaningless to them; God is dead, and humanity is no longer chosen, making the world even more meaningless."
Problem Statement in Mathematical Language#
- Now let us describe this thought process using more formal mathematical language:
- We have a function M(x), where M represents meaning, indicating that we can input x into this function to obtain the meaning y of parameter x.
- That is, M(x) = y; for example, in "The meaning of life is to enjoy happiness," life is parameter x, and y is enjoying happiness.
- If M(y) = z, then M'(x) = z, meaning the meaning of x is z.
- In the screenwriter's words, the painter's meaning of life is to watch that anime and go crazy, and going crazy is for happiness, so we can say the painter's meaning of life is for happiness.
- Therefore, if there is no result for M(y), i.e., M(y) = null, then we have M'(x) = null, meaning x has no meaning, so y <> M(x).
- If we seek further meaning from happiness, even if we can find some new "for," ultimately, we will find no answer, so the painter's meaning of life cannot be found, making the painter's existence meaningless.
Analysis and Summary#
- Expressing the thought process in the form of mathematical language is a very convenient analytical method, allowing us to easily identify the problem.
- Regarding the conclusion, not finding something does not mean it is gone; it merely means we cannot conceive of it, just as the unknown is not an empty set.
- Regarding the reasoning process, when we talk about a meaning, we usually refer to the role of the corresponding thing in the operational process, or some form of art and beauty. When we discover that something is done "for" a certain meaning, it does not mean that "for xxx" is the only meaning of that thing, nor does it mean that its original meaning disappears because we discovered what it is for.
- One thing can serve as the meaning of another, but at the same time, it itself has no meaning. A thing can participate in no operational process or lack any art and beauty, yet it still exists.
- Even if there was nothing before the Big Bang, and it had no meaning, that does not mean the painter's madness is meaningless; the meaning of the painter's madness is for happiness, but this is a different matter from the Big Bang having no purpose for anything else.
We cannot say that the meaning of the painter's madness is for the Big Bang.
- Therefore, due to the aforementioned invalid factors, such a thought process is clearly untenable; it treats certain meanings as the entirety of what we can obtain, which is evidently incorrect. In the painter's words, "I know all of this is wrong because I have a condition that makes me want to laugh whenever I hear the prelude to Haruhi."