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Exactly this. Mathematics provides an imperfect model that needs to be adjusted for engineering problems in the messy, real world.
by codesushi42 7y ago
Exactly this. Mathematics provides an imperfect model that needs to be adjusted for engineering problems in the messy, real world.
- krastanov 7y agoMaybe true about physics (as physics does strive to provide approximate models of reality), but mathematics is abstract and for most mathematicians any application to reality is coincidental. You might enjoy reading "The unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics" (it is many decades old, but recently a lot of CS essays copy the style and title).
- perl4ever 7y ago"The unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics" just always struck me as similar to commenting on how noses are made to fit glasses.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- waterhouse 7y agoWhile we're on the subject: The engineer thinks his equations approximate reality. The physicist thinks reality approximates his equations. The mathematician doesn't care.