Log24

Swashbucklers and Misfits

There are two theories of truth, according to a a book on the history of geometry —

The “Story Theory” and the “Diamond Theory.” 

For those who prefer the story theory…

From a review by Brian Hayes of A Beautiful Mind:

“Mathematical genius is rare enough. Cloaked in madness, or wrapped in serious eccentricity, it’s the stuff legends are made of.

There are brilliant and productive mathematicians who go to the office from nine to five, play tennis on the weekend, and worry about fixing the gearbox in the Volvo. Not many of them become the subjects of popular biographies. Instead we read about the great swashbucklers and misfits of mathematics, whose stories combine genius with high romance or eccentricity.”

Hollywood has recently given us a mathematical Russell Crowe.  For a somewhat tougher sell, Marilyn Monroe as a mathematician, see “Insignificance,” 1985: “Marilyn Monroe on her hands and knees explains the theory of relativity to Albert Einstein.”  

For a combination of misfit and swashbuckler in one Holy Name, see today’s earlier note, “The Artist’s Signature.”

See also my note of October 4, 2002, on Michelangelo, and the description of “the face of God” in this review.