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Fascinating world of mathematics

Mathematicians, rightly viewed not only truth, but supreme beauty, a beauty cold and austere like that of sculpture without appeal to any part of our nature, without the gorgeous trapping of painting or music, yet sublimely pure and capable of stein as only the greatest art can bestow"

-BERTRAND RUSSEL

Russel has beautifully described the nature of mathematics. It is the most beautiful heritage of mankind. Mathematician is a two sided coin with great intellectual adventure in which we discover beautiful pattern in numbers and space then create pattern of our own. A dozen wise men look at the Elephant called Mathematics:

The present article draws inspiration for the title from the story of seven blind men who touched different parts of the body of an elephant and accordingly gave views of what an elephant looked like. Similar is the story of mathematics. Each definition gives an incomplete picture of mathematics since each emphasizes only one major aspect of mathematics.

Humour and Wit in Mathematics:

Mathematicians are supposed to be dry and lack sense of humour. This is not true. They create their own brand of mathematical jokes. Mathematics is like white colour - dull, dry, pale and lifeless for persons who do not like it but actually it is a mixture of all the wonderful colours. Similar is the case with mathematics. If you try to study it closely, it will turn out to be the most exciting, interesting fun-filled subject but at the same time challenging and informative. Some of the famous jokes in mathematics are -

Mathematicians are Frenchmen. Whatever you say to them, translate in their own language and forthwith into something different.

Good mathematics, like politics, is the art of the possible.

I have the result but I don't know as yet how to get it.

Sangeeta Nair
(Octopi)