exercise, left as an

exercise, left as an  [from technical books] Used to
   complete a proof when one doesn't mind a {handwave}, or to avoid
   one entirely.  The complete phrase is: "The proof [or `the rest']
   is left as an exercise for the reader."  This comment *has*
   occasionally been attached to unsolved research problems by authors
   possessed of either an evil sense of humor or a vast faith in the
   capabilities of their audiences.



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