6 ms·

I don't think it has anything to do with communism, but I got similar observations. Don't know if that's still the case these days. I suspect the reason is tha

I don't think it has anything to do with communism, but I got similar observations. Don't know if that's still the case these days. I suspect the reason is that in many countries, there is a greater focus on getting the fundamentals done with significant rigor. USA curriculums put more of an emphasis on breadth. I think they [the Russians] are right. For STEM-focused students, there should be no short-cuts when it comes to mathematics curriculum.

wwweston 7y ago
Consider that the largest employer of mathematicians in the US is the state. Why is that? Why aren't market institutions valuing mathematicians more? Also, if you look around and individuals who are staffing the top hierarchies of business/market institutions, what kind of credentials are most commonly seen there? On top of that, in even intellectual subcultures, what stripes of intellect tend to be most respected in US culture? I think there's a number of ways (some subtle, some less so) in which American society messages people about the status of STEM and in particular about the M, which is almost always about its auxiliary value for something else and rarely respected in its own right. I think it's plausible there are a number of features of a communist culture that might shift some of those incentives, especially when combined with a generally more intellectual culture. (Also, this shouldn't need to be said, but this is not an argument about the general superiority of communist society. I suspect that more pragmatic societies do better than more ideologically organized societies.)
0kl 7y ago
Observation: USA curriculum, or, often in recent times, lack thereof, has not seemed to harm the USA’s position in the STEM field
kmill 7y ago
I can't find it at the moment --- it was an essay about a Russian mathematician's experiences coming to the United States and the culture shock with respect to education --- but in it he offered that Soviet academics' relationship to mathematical education was rooted in it being a safe avenue for self-expression and collaboration amongst all the censorship. Students had a drive to solve all the problems they could due to how much of a precious resource these groups were. (I believe the Math Circles program in the United States is inspired by these arrangements.)
- zarmin 7y ago
  PDF warning: https://faculty.utrgv.edu/eleftherios.gkioulekas/OGS/Misc/ARUSSIAN.PDF https://faculty.utrgv.edu/eleftherios.gkioulekas/OGS/Misc/AR... Good read. I searched for "Russian mathematician's experiences coming to the United States and the culture shock with respect to education" ;)
- Ididntdothis 7y ago
  This actually makes sense. The communists probably didn’t have much of an opinion about math so mathematicians could do whatever they wanted to do within that area. I read the same about rock music in East Germany. The party didn’t know how to deal with that so it left the fans and musicians alone.

wwweston 7y ago

Consider that the largest employer of mathematicians in the US is the state. Why is that? Why aren't market institutions valuing mathematicians more? Also, if you look around and individuals who are staffing the top hierarchies of business/market institutions, what kind of credentials are most commonly seen there? On top of that, in even intellectual subcultures, what stripes of intellect tend to be most respected in US culture? I think there's a number of ways (some subtle, some less so) in which American society messages people about the status of STEM and in particular about the M, which is almost always about its auxiliary value for something else and rarely respected in its own right. I think it's plausible there are a number of features of a communist culture that might shift some of those incentives, especially when combined with a generally more intellectual culture. (Also, this shouldn't need to be said, but this is not an argument about the general superiority of communist society. I suspect that more pragmatic societies do better than more ideologically organized societies.)

0kl 7y ago

Observation: USA curriculum, or, often in recent times, lack thereof, has not seemed to harm the USA’s position in the STEM field

kmill 7y ago

I can't find it at the moment --- it was an essay about a Russian mathematician's experiences coming to the United States and the culture shock with respect to education --- but in it he offered that Soviet academics' relationship to mathematical education was rooted in it being a safe avenue for self-expression and collaboration amongst all the censorship. Students had a drive to solve all the problems they could due to how much of a precious resource these groups were. (I believe the Math Circles program in the United States is inspired by these arrangements.)

zarmin 7y ago
PDF warning: https://faculty.utrgv.edu/eleftherios.gkioulekas/OGS/Misc/ARUSSIAN.PDF https://faculty.utrgv.edu/eleftherios.gkioulekas/OGS/Misc/AR... Good read. I searched for "Russian mathematician's experiences coming to the United States and the culture shock with respect to education" ;)
Ididntdothis 7y ago
This actually makes sense. The communists probably didn’t have much of an opinion about math so mathematicians could do whatever they wanted to do within that area. I read the same about rock music in East Germany. The party didn’t know how to deal with that so it left the fans and musicians alone.