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Dangerous Knowledge (documentary): Cantor, Boltzmann, Godel and Turing, genius and insanity
- aristus 19y agoUgh, not this tired old trope again! Cantor was a troubled man, but he solved the fucking problem, ok? Pitying him because infinity "drove him insane" is like pitying St George's loss to the dragon. It's not just wrong, it's insulting.
- eru 19y agoCantor made a major contribution. But his set theory did not solve everything. There were contradictions and paradoxes lurking. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Cantor#Paradoxes_of_set_theory http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Cantor#Paradoxes_of_set_t...)
- aristus 19y agoMy point is that his work didn't drive him mad. This heroic Promethian myth about "dangerous knowledge" is as tiresome as it is false. These Hollywood types need a new stereotype to beat to death.
- eru 19y agoAh, OK. I agree. So I guess his madness drove him to work instead. Actually I live quite close to were Cantor worked. According to Google-Earth I would have to drive for 1h.