"Interpreting Mathematics..."

A Sunday reflection from Mircea Pitici today -- which I've also included in my review of his latest book, new today at MathTango:

"Interpreting mathematics is a further stage of thinking mathematically -- not a "higher" stage or a "lower" stage, just an essentially different one. Interpreting mathematics is not about mathematical truth (or any other truth); it is a personal take on mathematical facts, and in that it can be true or untrue, or it can even be fiction; it is vision, or it is rigorous reasoning, or it is pure speculation, all occasioned by mathematics; it is imagination on a mathematical theme; it goes back several millennia and it is flourishing today, as I hope this series of books lays clear... To speak about interpreting mathematics sounds odd, but it seems so only because the customary indoctrination served by our school system pervades the common views of mathematics, both among mathematicians and the lay public."

Mathematicians As Mavericks (Sunday Reflection)

"Mathematicians are mavericks -- inventors and explorers of sorts; they create new things and discover novel ways of looking at old things; they believe things hard to believe, and question what seems to be obvious. Mathematicians also disrupt patterns of entrenched thinking; their work concerns vast streams of physical and mental phenomena from which they pick the proportions that make up a customized blend of abstractions, glued by tight reasoning and augmented with clues glanced from the natural universe. This amalgam differs from one mathematician to another; it is 'purer' or 'less pure,' depending on how little or how much 'application' it contains; it is also changeable, flexible, and adaptable, reflecting (or reacting to) the social intercourse of ideas that influences each of us…

"And here comes a peculiar aspect that distinguishes mathematics among other intellectual domains: Mathematicians seek validation inside their discipline and community but feel little need (if any) for validation coming from outside. This professional chasm surrounding much of the mathematics profession is inevitable up to a point because of the nature of the discipline. It is a Janus-faced curse of the ivory tower, and it is unfortunate if we ignore it."

-- Mircea Pitici from the Introduction to "The Best Writing On Mathematics 2013"

(p.s. -- I believe the 2014 edition of "The Best Writing On Mathematics" will be appearing in stores by the end of this month.)


[…If you have a favorite math-related passage that might make a nice Sunday morning reflection here let me know (SheckyR@gmail.com). If I use one submitted by a reader, I'll cite the contributor.]

 

Monday Potpourri

Time to catch up on a few things from the past couple days.

Readers seem to always enjoy 'quickies' as I call 'em, so here's a delectable one from a recent Twitter feed for all the foodies out there:

https://twitter.com/nerdfaced/status/289867477305937920/photo/1

'Wild About Math's' latest podcast is with Mircea Pitici, the editor of the annual "The Best Writing On Mathematics" series. The ~hour-long podcast is here:

http://wildaboutmath.com/2013/01/13/mircea-pitici-inspired-by-math-15/

I reviewed Pitici's latest 2012 edition on the blog HERE, and also included it in my book shopping list recommendations for Christmas a couple months ago.
[ADDENDUM: Yikes! Sol is churning out the podcasts lately and already has a lengthy, newer one up with Steven Strogatz -- haven't had a chance to listen yet, but undoubtedly HAS TO BE good stuff!]

Finally, what's worrying mathematicians these days…? We get a hint from John Brockman.
Brockman's cutting-edge/contemplative 'Edge' site has posted responses to its 2013 question "What should we be worried about?":

http://edge.org/contributors/q2013

Lots (150+) of good contributions of course, but I'll just link to three of the mathematicians who replied, and pique your interest with the first couple of lines from their entries:

Keith Devlin: http://edge.org/response-detail/23783

"Are we about to see advances in mathematics come to an end? Until last year, I would have said no. Now I am not so sure."

Clifford Pickover: http://edge.org/response-detail/23670

"I used to worry that our mathematical and physical descriptions of the universe grow forever, but our brains and language skills remain entrenched. Some of our computer chips and software are becoming mind-numbingly complex."

Steven Strogatz: http://edge.org/response-detail/23820

"In every realm where we exist as a collective — in society, in the global economy, on the Internet — we are blithely increasing the coupling between us, with no idea what that might entail."