From: Sean O'Halpin <sean.ohalpin@...>
Date: 2009-04-05T20:12:59+09:00
Subject: Re: [Ann] Verify, a very basic testing tool.

On Sun, Apr 5, 2009 at 8:11 AM, Charles Oliver Nutter
<charles.nutter@sun.com> wrote:
> Robert Dober wrote:
>>
>> On Fri, Apr 3, 2009 at 10:56 PM, Ryan Davis <ryand-ruby@zenspider.com>
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> On Apr 3, 2009, at 13:02 , Robert Dober wrote:
>>>
>>>>      Verify do
>>>>        verify do 42 end
>>>>        verify_not do nil end
>>>>        verify_exceptions NameError do abcdefghijk end
>>>>      end
>>>
>>> refute: same length as verify!
>>
>> Never heard of that word before, just checked it on Websters, thanx
>> Ryan great idea.
>
> Drat, I didn't explain it well, and a quick check shows that refute is "to
> disprove or to prove false", according to most dictionaries. I guess I just
> don't like it as an opposite of "assert". All the thesauruses I've checked
> list the antonyms of "assert" as "deny" and "reject", and the antonyms of
> "refute" as "demonstrate", "prove", "accept", or "embrace". There's a
> disconnect there I can't seem to remedy.
>
> - Charlie
>
>

I agree with you that 'refute' doesn't seem right. Not wanting to get
too pedantic about all this (but failing miserably :), from
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/philosophy/guide/glossary.shtml:

"REFUTE To refute a proposition or theory is to establish  or prove
that it is false. Lately many people have taken to using ‘refute’ as a
synonym for ‘deny’, but avoid this usage in philosophy. To deny that
God exists is not, in philosophical usage, to refute (or disprove) the
proposition that God exists."

Generally 'I assert  P' means 'I am stating that proposition P is
true' and 'I deny Q' means 'I am stating that proposition Q' is false,
which would fit with your interpretation, i.e. if you deny Q and Q
turns out to be false, then you are correct. However, you haven't
proven anything. Your statement and reality just happen to be in
agreement. To refute Q is to ~prove~ that Q is false. There is no
further argument - Q is false and can only be false. I don't see how
we can assert that simply because a test turns out to return a false
value we have proven anything. We are simply getting assurance that
our assertions and reality are in agreement. In short, if we are
looking for a candidate to be the antonym of 'assert', 'deny' seems to
fit the bill.

A further wrinkle:  'prove' itself has the somewhat archaic meaning of
'test'... as in 'the exception that proves the rule' :)

Regards,
Sean