On the Importance of Mathematics
by rrusczyk, Dec 3, 2009, 4:29 PM
AoPSer orl sent me this article by Marcus du Sautoy, who wrote one of my favorite math popularization books, Music of the Primes, which even vRusczyk really liked. (I also love du Satoy's picture on Wikipedia -- he could easily be a football hooligan.)
The article highlights the importance of mathematics as the language of science, and thereby the importance of math and science to understanding the world around us. As I noted earlier, Climategate's weakening of the public authority of these worldviews are, to me, the most damaging aspects of the scandal. I suppose everything is sullied when it gets tangled with politics, and science is no different.
I think the article also slips in how critical one small gesture by the right teacher at the right time can be. I wish more teachers could see in some of their students what du Sautoy's teacher saw in him, a student who thirsted for more, and that these teachers could at least point those students in a fruitful direction (like, say, at AoPS
). I had a few math teachers in middle and high school who did this for me, and it was far more valuable than any math I could have been taught at the time. Simply being shown that there is more is a momentous first step. (And I think it's one that MATHCOUNTS doesn't get enough credit for...)
The article highlights the importance of mathematics as the language of science, and thereby the importance of math and science to understanding the world around us. As I noted earlier, Climategate's weakening of the public authority of these worldviews are, to me, the most damaging aspects of the scandal. I suppose everything is sullied when it gets tangled with politics, and science is no different.
I think the article also slips in how critical one small gesture by the right teacher at the right time can be. I wish more teachers could see in some of their students what du Sautoy's teacher saw in him, a student who thirsted for more, and that these teachers could at least point those students in a fruitful direction (like, say, at AoPS
). I had a few math teachers in middle and high school who did this for me, and it was far more valuable than any math I could have been taught at the time. Simply being shown that there is more is a momentous first step. (And I think it's one that MATHCOUNTS doesn't get enough credit for...)
February 2012
January 2012