What is it like to be a mathematician?
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Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#2I did three years of Maths in University. Then, I swap to Computer Science because it was always 'my thing'. When I read this kind of posts I really miss Maths. It is beautiful.
If you never tried, if your only experience is high school, go for it. Learn some Math. You will be happier.
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#3[deleted]
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#4I did three years of Maths in University. Then, I swap to Computer Science because it was always 'my thing'. When I read this kind of posts I really miss Maths. It is beautiful. If you never tried, if your only experience is high school, go for it. Learn some Math. You will be happier.
Math is satisfying in that you can study it either for its own sake, or in order to better arm yourself to understand the world.
To each his/her preference. I like both.
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#5When you're a mathematician, everything is black or white, but you get to define what those two words mean.
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#6Ed Frenkel made a film to convey the beauty of math - some nudity.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1530994/
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#7Same as to be a biologist, or a programmer or a doctor.
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#8I'm an applied mathematician (PhD) working partially in software development, partially in research mathematics and statistics proper.
A mathematician is someone who works on things that honestly very few folks can understand completely (not due to complexity per se, just depth and lack of general familiarity). Publication peer-review aside, it's also unlikely that the few folks who can judge your work are in any position to fire you. It's a rewarding and pretty secure gig.
But I still think that the most interesting work is very multidisciplinary in nature, so a CS, engineering or physical sciences background really does enhance the work you can do. Like in any other career, don't let yourself become a one-trick pony.
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#9Same as to be a biologist, or a programmer or a doctor.
As far as I can see, being a programmer has almost nothing in common with being a doctor...
Re: What is it like to be a mathematician?
#10I'm an applied mathematician (PhD) working partially in software development, partially in research mathematics and statistics proper. A mathematician is someone who works on things that honestly very few folks can understand completely (not due to complexity per se, just depth and lack of general familiarity). Publication peer-review aside, it's also unlikely that the few folks who can judge your work are in any pos…
My advisor in grad school put it this way: being a mathematician basically amounts to being the world's leading expert on something only about 5 people give a shit about.