Does mathematics really "exist"?

Mike Rugnetta asks “Is Math a Feature of the Universe or a Feature of Human Creation?”.

Math is invisible. Unlike physics, chemistry, and biology we can’t see it, smell it, or even directly observe it in the universe. And so that has made a lot of really smart people ask, does it actually even EXIST?!?! Similar to the tree falling in the forest, there are people who believe that if no person existed to count, math wouldn’t be around . .at ALL!!!! But is this true? Do we live in a mathless universe? Or if math is a real entity that exists, are there formulas and mathematical concepts out there in the universe that are undiscovered? Or is it all fiction? Whew!! So many questions, so many theories… watch the episode and let us know what you think!

Mike Rugnetta of PBS’ Idea Channel

The discussion is rather philosophical…

ul. Sniadeckich

impan

impan The Institute of Mathematics of the Polish Academy of Sciences at Warsaw is located on ul. Śniadeckich. I decided to have a quick look into the naming of the street. I discovered that it is named after two brothers, both of whom were outstanding Polish scholars end of the eighteenth and the first half of the nineteenth century.

Jan Śniadecki

Jan Śniadecki (August 29, 1756– November 9, 1830) was a Polish mathematician, philosopher and astronomer. He published works on his observations of the then recently discovered planetoids.

His O rachunku losów (On the Calculation of Chance, 1817) was a pioneering work in probability theory.

Jan
(1823 painting by Jan Rustem)

Jędrzej Śniadecki

Jed
(1843 painting by Aleksander Sleńdziński)
Jędrzej Śniadecki (30 November 1768 – 12 May 1838) was a Polish physician, chemist and biologist.

He is best known for important book Początki chemii (The Beginnings of Chemistry), the first Polish-language chemistry textbook.