Cultures of proving

Although studies of scientific practice are now common, relatively little a ttention has been given to the technical detail of the social objects of th e sciences. That detail, and the ordinariness of that detail, establish the legitimacy of practitioners' work and make that work recognizable as the w ork of a discovering science. In particular, the close examination of mathe matical proofs exhibits the embeddedness of mathematics within a surroundin g culture of proving, and leads to an appreciation of what it means to be a member of such a culture and to be engaged in the work of doing mathematic s.