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I just read 'A Mathematician's Apology' where Hardy touches on this at one point. If you want to consider someone's opinion on your question (besides cperciva),
by selva 18y ago
I just read 'A Mathematician's Apology' where Hardy touches on this at one point. If you want to consider someone's opinion on your question (besides cperciva), consider Hardy's (because he was a great mathematican and a brutally honest person). Briefly, Hardy thought the ability to make deep contributions to mathematics erodes after middle age. He cites Euler, Abel, Ramanujan, et al. Hardy mentions Gauss who was old (55, I think) when he made a major contribution but, Hardy notes, the idea for it had germinated while Gauss was young. I personally think Nature plays a bigger part than nurture when it comes to mathematical ability (of the rarer kind). Ramanujan is a classic example. He had pretty much no nurture. Way before anyone knew or cared, he was producing stunning mathematical insights.
- spinor 18y agoWhat about Hardy's collaborator Littlewood, who continued to do excellent research into a very ripe old age? Hardy was a depressive, and this may have had an effect. How many of the great mathematicians used Cocaine or amphetamines--not a silly idea, look at how many students use such drugs--to get early success. Recall that Cocaine was LEGAL in the 19th century. Does this explain their early burnout, and the bipolar depression symptoms ( called repeated nervous breakdowns) of so many of the great mathematicians in the 19th and early 20th century?
- spinor 18y agoWhat about Hardy's collaborator Littlewood, who continued to do excellent research into a very ripe old age? Hardy was a depressive, and this may have had an effect. How many of the great mathematicians used Cocaine or amphetamines--not a silly idea, look at how many students use such drugs--to get early success. Recall that Cocaine was LEGAL in the 19th century. Does this explain their early burnout, and the bipolar depression symptoms ( called repeated nervous breakdowns) of so many of the great mathematicians in the 19th and early 20th century?
- spinor 18y agoWhat about Hardy's collaborator Littlewood, who continued to do excellent research into a very ripe old age? Hardy was a depressive, and this may have had an effect. How many of the great mathematicians used Cocaine or amphetamines--not a silly idea, look at how many students use such drugs--to get early success. Recall that Cocaine was LEGAL in the 19th century. Does this explain their early burnout, and the bipolar depression symptoms ( called repeated nervous breakdowns) of so many of the great mathematicians in the 19th and early 20th century?