Mathematicians are not driven by truth so much as by beauty. There is nothing exceptional about this claim, and it is only surprising to those who are not themselves mathematicians. The driving force of beauty in mathematical research has occasionally been documented; G. Hardy’s A Mathematician’s Apology being one example, Davis and Hersch’s The Mathematical Experience being another, more contemporary one. However, I thought I would mention another aspect of the connection between beauty and mathematics, one to which I can speak more directly and personally.

You see, many years ago my father gave me his slide rule.

Continue reading →