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Anyone recommend the essay mentioned in the article? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Mathematician's_Apology https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Mathematician'

Anyone recommend the essay mentioned in the article? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Mathematician's_Apology https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Mathematician's_Apology https://archive.org/details/hardy_annotated/page/n1 https://archive.org/details/hardy_annotated/page/n1

romwell 7y ago
I'd recommend starting with the (much, much) shorter, modern sequel: Paul Lockhart's "Mathematician's Lament"[1] It addresses a different side of the question. Namely, why, if mathematics is about beauty, most people perceive it as an instrument of torture? (The TL;DR is: the way we teach math is often a nonsencial torture, to the extent that what we teach is not math). [1]Lockhart's Lament: https://www.maa.org/external_archive/devlin/LockhartsLament.pdf https://www.maa.org/external_archive/devlin/LockhartsLament....
- hackermailman 7y ago
  There's a guy who teaches math that makes sense from the bottom up if anybody is interested https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5A714C94D40392AB https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5A714C94D40392AB If you supplement his rational math with those books from AOPS (art of problem solving curriculum) to practice, it's actually quite easy. Their intro to number theory book is a good example of exploring the 'beauty' (in quotes so I don't sound like a cringeworthy pseudophilosopher)
- deleted 7y ago
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jimhefferon 7y ago
I found the Apology a delight. You can easily read it in one sitting. But it will stay with you for a long time. It is a book you find yourself thinking about long after. It is by one of the great minds of his generation and his thoughts are elegantly expressed. (Not saying that the views are completely right. Many observers, for instance, have noted that the Number Theory that Hardy cites as without application is used today as the basis of coding. But the ideas are both well-informed and well-stated.)

romwell 7y ago

I'd recommend starting with the (much, much) shorter, modern sequel: Paul Lockhart's "Mathematician's Lament"[1] It addresses a different side of the question. Namely, why, if mathematics is about beauty, most people perceive it as an instrument of torture? (The TL;DR is: the way we teach math is often a nonsencial torture, to the extent that what we teach is not math). [1]Lockhart's Lament: https://www.maa.org/external_archive/devlin/LockhartsLament.pdf https://www.maa.org/external_archive/devlin/LockhartsLament....

hackermailman 7y ago
There's a guy who teaches math that makes sense from the bottom up if anybody is interested https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5A714C94D40392AB https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5A714C94D40392AB If you supplement his rational math with those books from AOPS (art of problem solving curriculum) to practice, it's actually quite easy. Their intro to number theory book is a good example of exploring the 'beauty' (in quotes so I don't sound like a cringeworthy pseudophilosopher)
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]

jimhefferon 7y ago

I found the Apology a delight. You can easily read it in one sitting. But it will stay with you for a long time. It is a book you find yourself thinking about long after. It is by one of the great minds of his generation and his thoughts are elegantly expressed. (Not saying that the views are completely right. Many observers, for instance, have noted that the Number Theory that Hardy cites as without application is used today as the basis of coding. But the ideas are both well-informed and well-stated.)