Counterexamples
Formal mathematics is based on provable truth. In mathematics, any number of cases supporting a conjecture, no matter how large, is insufficient for establishing the conjecture's veracity, since a single counterexample would immediately bring down the conjecture. Conjectures disproven through counterexample are sometimes referred to as false conjectures (cf. Pólya conjecture).
Mathematical journals sometimes publish the minor results of research teams having extended a given search farther than previously done. For instance, the Collatz conjecture, which concerns whether or not certain sequences of integers terminate, has been tested for all integers up to 1.2 × 1012 (over a trillion). In practice, however, it is extremely rare for this type of work to yield a counterexample and such efforts are generally regarded as mere displays of computing power, rather than meaningful contributions to formal mathematics.
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