[Math] Why are Euclid axioms of geometry considered ‘not sound’

axiomsgeometryphilosophy

The five postulates (axioms) are:

  1. "To draw a straight line from any point to any point."

  2. "To produce [extend] a finite straight line continuously in a
    straight line."

  3. "To describe a circle with any centre and distance [radius]."

  4. "That all right angles are equal to one another."

  5. "That, if a straight line falling on two straight lines make the
    interior angles on the same side less than two right angles, the two
    straight lines, if produced indefinitely, meet on that side on which
    are the angles less than the two right angles."

What's wrong with them? Which axiomatic system is being used nowadays? Hilbert's or SMSG (School Mathematics Study Group)? I believe in the case of SMSG the list of axioms contains some redundancy. Why do people say Euclid's axioms are 'far from being sound', even if they are all still (I guess) believed to be true? If there's something wrong with them, then maybe our better (Hilbert's or whatever) axiomatic system contains some false statements?

Best Answer

There's nothing wrong with Euclid's postulates per se; the main problem is that they're not sufficient to prove all of the theorems that he claims to prove. (A lesser problem is that they aren't stated quite precisely enough for modern tastes, but that's easily remedied.) In every modern axiom system (e.g., Hilbert's, Birkhoff's, and SMSG), each of Euclid's postulates (suitably translated into modern language) is provable as a theorem, which shows that Euclid's postulates are consistent. You can find an extensive discussion of these ideas in my book Axiomatic Geometry.