I have earlier cited published proofs this problem is NP-complete. If Fobes has a polynomial time algorithm he has proven P=NP and should immediately collect his million dollar Clay Institute prize for the greatest mathematical achievement so far this century.
However, I doubt it. I think it far more likely that Fobes is a fraud -- as has been every other person who has claimed to have invented a polytime algorithm for an NP-hard problem (and there have been dozens -- they generally serve as a source of amusement for computer scientists who enjoy laughing at them). >Calculating a "complex" case with 12 choices is so fast that >I haven't bothered to time the calculations. --how touching. Actual computer scientists time their calculations versus problem size, however. >The estimated time for calculating results for 50 choices (!) is less >than a minute -- which is far less than a "lifetime". --quite odd that Fobes had to "estimate" this, why not actually spend those few minutes to actually time it? --Looking at Fobes' so-called descriptions of his so-called algorithms, it is rapidly apparent that Fobes blatantly disregards and holds in contempt, every computer science paper that has ever presented an algorithm before. Things like "pseudocode" and "proofs" evidently are unnecessary for a great and revolutionary thinker like Fobes, who instead resorts to "English prose poetry-like descriptions" reminiscent of an illustrated edition of Charles Dickens. And it all is carefully "copyrighted." But: might anybody be interested in a little wager? If Fobes successfully collects the million dollar Clay Prize by the end of 2012 for his successful proof P=NP, I offer to pay whoever wagers versus me, $10000. If not, though, I get the $10000. Any takers? -- Warren D. Smith http://RangeVoting.org <-- add your endorsement (by clicking "endorse" as 1st step) ---- Election-Methods mailing list - see http://electorama.com/em for list info
