I did Math in undergrad. I hung out with grads and profs a lot, and of course the bright undergrads who would become the grads and profs who apprehended mathema

I did Math in undergrad. I hung out with grads and profs a lot, and of course the bright undergrads who would become the grads and profs who apprehended mathematical concepts far quicker than I ever could. It became clear to me partway through my freshman year that mathematics is an extremely social activity. The books are gappy, the exercises are more open ended than you'd think for something that has a single answer, the lectures are best when they are conversations, and the best place to learn something is at the chalkboard with a cup of tea in hand as someone scratches out a diagram composed of all intuition and no logic that makes you go "aha!" I think all barriers of language are social barriers.