Synopsis

Mathematics has revolutionized technology and is shaping the modern world in amazing ways, even shaping the way people think. Yet many people say "I'm not a math person" without realizing the ways they already think mathematically, and without seeing how such thinking is central to what it means to be a human being. Discover how math fulfills basic human-spiritual longings, such as for beauty and exploration and truth, and how it builds virtues like persistence, creativity, and hopefulness that serve you well no matter what you do in life. In an era where computers and AI can outperform humans at maths skills, it’s still important—for our sakes—that we continue to learn and enjoy maths.

Speaker bio:

Francis Su is the Benediktsson-Karwa Professor of Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College and a past president of the Mathematical Association of America (the first of Chinese descent). In 2013, he received the Haimo Award, a nationwide teaching prize in the United States for college math faculty, and in 2018 he won the Halmos-Ford writing award. His work has been featured in Quanta Magazine, Wired, and The New York Times. His book Mathematics for Human Flourishing won the 2021 Euler Book Prize and has been translated into 8 languages, including Chinese. It is an inclusive vision of what math is, who it's for, and why anyone should learn it.

Video recording: