en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb%27s_problem
1 correction found
appeared in the March 1973 issue of Scientific American
The Scientific American appearance was not in March 1973. Scientific American’s archive shows Gardner’s Newcomb’s problem column was published in July 1973, while the March issue was a later 1974 follow-up.
Full reasoning
Scientific American's own archive identifies Martin Gardner's original Mathematical Games column on Newcomb's problem as "Mathematical Games, July 1973", published July 1, 1973 in Vol. 229 No. 1, with the subtitle "Free will revisited, with a mind-bending prediction paradox by William Newcomb." That directly contradicts the claim that it appeared in March 1973.
Scientific American also has a separate March 1974 column titled "Mathematical Games, March 1974" with the subtitle "Reflections on Newcomb's problem: a prediction and free-will dilemma." This indicates that a March issue related to Newcomb's problem did exist, but it was March 1974, not March 1973.
So the article's date is wrong: the Newcomb's problem piece in Scientific American appeared in July 1973 (with a follow-up in March 1974), not March 1973.
2 sources
- Mathematical Games, July 1973 | Scientific American
Scientific American July 1, 1973 ... Mathematical Games, July 1973 ... Free will revisited, with a mind-bending prediction paradox by William Newcomb ... published ... in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 229 No. 1 (July 1973), p. 104.
- Mathematical Games, March 1974 | Scientific American
Scientific American March 1, 1974 ... Mathematical Games, March 1974 ... Reflections on Newcomb's problem: a prediction and free-will dilemma ... published ... in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 230 No. 3 (March 1974), p. 102.