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I’m starting to strongly believe that mathematics is neither “obvious” nor “natural”. https://twitter.com/yet_so_far/status/1291867429245722630
I am not an expert on cognition, so what follows is pure shitpost, but let us think about another activity that should be universal but is very cultural, music.
Children will hum to themselves, respond to melodies they find pleasing, etc, but not all of it qualifies as music.
Children will hum to themselves, respond to melodies they find pleasing, etc, but not all of it qualifies as music.
And depending on what you grew up with, a lot of what other people think of and even know, as music, can be unrecognisable as such to you. That’s my experience, anyway. I listen mostly to Indian music that many other, including people I grew up around, don’t _get_.
I can’t even answer the question of what is Indian about this music, or these musics, to be more accurate. But leave that aside.
Yes, some of it transcends. But a lot of it doesn’t.
Yes, some of it transcends. But a lot of it doesn’t.
Not sure where I’m going with this. But when people who are studying music tell me that they “did ragas in my ethnomusicology module”, it frankly hurts me.
I thought this would be a helpful analogy, for some reason.
I thought this would be a helpful analogy, for some reason.
Maybe @VishChess or @shockmonger have a more informed take on this.
I guess what I’m saying is, there are musical things we all do, untaught, but converting that into the body of art that counts as music is process on which cultures and their relative imbalances of power come into play.
Same for mathematics.
Same for mathematics.
And it’s not just about “mathematical truth”. Mathematical writing and communication is purely culture, (and I’d argue a lot of it is bad and needs change) but I occasionally meet young people who could flourish, who already come to university having evolved their own grammar.
And part of my job is to do what was done to me, which is to convince them that it’s important that they speak the same language as everyone else.
I guess the Ramanujan story is the most spectacular example of this. (Not claiming any parallels here, of course.)
I guess the Ramanujan story is the most spectacular example of this. (Not claiming any parallels here, of course.)
But that doesn’t mean I am invested in upholding the dominant culture. I am in no position to challenge it, and neither are my students, yet.
If there comes a revolution that smashes harmful hegemonies, I will welcome it.
If there comes a revolution that smashes harmful hegemonies, I will welcome it.
Even as “research mathematicians” we ought to be acutely aware of our culture.
I can’t be the only one who looked at their results and asked “is this mathematics?”, or have colleagues tell them their field was “just puzzles”, or a reviewer tell them a paper was “expository”?
I can’t be the only one who looked at their results and asked “is this mathematics?”, or have colleagues tell them their field was “just puzzles”, or a reviewer tell them a paper was “expository”?
