"Our universe is painted with numbers, says Marcus du Sautoy. Mathematical patterns are a universal feature of the natural world, from the petals of flowers and the seeds in an apple to honeycombs and the ratios of musical harmony. And for the Oxford mathematician, the equations that describe how the universe works are every bit as beautiful as a piece of classical music or an impressionist painting".
How ironic that you posted this today. Earlier this morning I was watching an episode of Arthur C. Clarke where they were discussing mathematics and fractals. The discussion was on the Mandelbrot set, but they went into quite some detail on how this relates to the universe. I found it both fascinating and brilliant at the same time. The images that are generated are just so beautiful. I find it hard to believe that this was something that had not even been envisioned until the 90's. I personally am not to keen on mathematics per say, which is also funny because I am an accountant. There is just something really wonderful about numbers, like I often say to clients, "They (numbers) do not lie, what they represent is just the facts... nothing else." Anyway if you have about an hour to kill here is a great piece by Arthur C. Clarke. I especially liked the comments on the darkness,( quite profound actually if you think about it from a spiritual place) and the relevance of the increasing and decreasing values in regards to what you see visually in the fractal set.
When I joined the (first) bank for my second job, I had to attend a banking seminar for orientation. The head of our department was one of the speakers. He said that the universe is governed by a system that's why we have to abide because a system has a purpose. He was the head of the Systems and Methods department to which I belong. But with mathematics and the universe, I don't think I can relate to that because I am not fond of mathematics.
Physics is everywhere. Like the beautiful things I see here has a pattern as you sy of mathematical proportions. At college I was studying to be a cosmetician and did you know that our hair cuts is studied as a mathematical portion situation? I had not known that a simple hair cut was a mathematical situation! We all have weight so we are a mathematical walking instrument as well. Mathematical portion in nature?
When I saw the title I also thought it was about painting by numbers instead of how everything in the world is connected and that there is always a system of how it works together. Cooking is a system of numbers also, how much of each item is needed to make it all work out to the final results. I see the use of numbers when I sew or repair a piece of clothes.
In the old days a person's health, was described as "looking a little peak-ed" or they were "right as rain"! The diagnosis was made up of fuzzy words... Not much for numbers, back then! But now, it's ALL about numbers, shortened abbreviations & long worded diseases. But mostly jam packed with numbers! I have heard it said, that we are all....just a number!
Mathematical probability: it is estimated that running for thirty minutes a day increases one's life expectancy by exactly thirty minutes. In truth, this seems a pointless exchange. I can, quite frankly, live without those thirty minutes of running.
@Tom Locke You know I wonder about those exercise statistics. Being a person that works out regularly I do ponder if it is going to be all worth it as I get older. That is IF I get older, because as dismal as it sounds none of us really know for sure do we? For what it is worth the one thing I can take away from working out is the fact that I can now manage to get all the groceries in the house on one attempt. Now that does not sound like much, and we really do not eat much. There is something rewarding in knowing that I can and do have the strength to do some of the things that others might find hard. Don't get me wrong I still hurt in the morning, or sometimes that night even. Overall though... and my point... I do truly wonder about the statistics and that value of doing all that extra work. What a waste if you just drop dead on the treadmill.
On that basis, I have just poured myself another glass of South African Fairtrade wine and will happily sacrifice thirty minutes of self-imposed torture for a few minutes of self-indulgent pleasure.
This is all a bit over my head yet I can see mathematics might have been a fascinating subject had I learned enough to understand this at the time of my learning. Or maybe I was not capable of learning a subject far too complicated to understand at the time.
@Bill Boggs, I think education changes to fit our needs. Mathematics for most of us from our generation reflected our simpler way of life. Most of us were taught to live in a more labor intense society than what is around us today. Now we leave those jobs to the poorly educated. Research is today's goal, so mathematics must capture and intrigue the minds of today's youth. I am lucky enough to be on the sidelines of a 16 year old's life, and I am amazed at the many ways he applies math to the different things in his world. He started college at 15, and he has a wide and varied interest in what is out there for him. It doesn't make any difference if it is video games, martial arts, or the music he writes and plays, he loves to turn those things into mathematic formulas.