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> It's virtually impossible to predict which mathematical tools will be "practical" or "useful" in the future On a long enough timeline, you're right! But if w
by phendrenad2 4y ago
> It's virtually impossible to predict which mathematical tools will be "practical" or "useful" in the future
On a long enough timeline, you're right! But if we limit ourselves to, say, the next 5,000 years, it gets a lot easier to accomplish. ;)
- asynchrony 4y agoHow does limiting the timeline to 5,000 years enhance our ability to predict the future?
- phendrenad2 4y agoThe more you limit your timeline, the easier is is to predict the future. That's why we only have 10-day weather forecasts.
- ubj 4y agoGood point, maybe a better way of phrasing it would have been "It's virtually impossible to predict which tools will _not_ be useful" :) Fast Fourier transforms, complex numbers, complexity classes, etc. are clearly useful. It's much harder to rigorously claim that a result will _never_ be practical or useful. Just to be clear, I think it's fair to say that a result isn't _immediately_ useful. But who can say whether or not it will have a more practical application down the road? Only time will tell.