A Case Study of Theorem Proving by the Knuth-Bendix Method: Discovering That x³=x Implies Ring Commutativity

An automatic procedure was used to discover the fact that x 3 = x implies ring commutativity. The proof of this theorem was posed as a challenge problem by W.W. Bledsoe in a 1977 article. The only previous atttomated proof was by Robert Veroff using the Argonne National Laboratory — Northern Illinois University theorem-proving system. The technique used to prove this theorem was the Knuth-Bendix completion method with associative and/or commutative unification. This was applied to a set of reductions consisting of a complete set of reductions for free rings plus the reduction x × x × x → and resulted in the purely forward-reasoning derivation of x × y = y × x. An important extension to this methodology, which made solution of the x 3 = x ring problem feasible, is the use of cancellation laws to simplify derived reductions. Their use in the Knuth-Bendix method can substantially accelerate convergence of complete sets of reductions. A second application of the Knuth-Bendix method to the set of reductions for free rings plus the reduction x × x × x → x, but this time with the commutativity of multiplication assumed, resulted in the discovery of a complete set of reductions for free rings satisfying x 3 = x. This complete set of reductions can be used to decide the word problem for the x 3 = x ring.