When mathematical passion recedes

From: Badgers.Volleyball_at_mathforum.org, nice exciting game! (erdosfan_at_yahoo.com)
Date: 10/16/04 

Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2004 12:19:33 +0000 (UTC)

Well, college life. It does give me many hiden aspects of who I am.
I am not sure at all if my college does, but I do love my college,
and I really love to watch my college's team play a game.

Today, the women's volleyball team lost. But after the game, all I
think about is "Although we lost, they did pretty well", "Next time,
they will win", "I wish I could speak English well as Americans do"
(so that I could encourage her in English, could say something that
could cheer her up, could ask her out, and so on...) and so on. The mathematical content is, after the game, I do not care even a bit
about mathematics and physics.

Although I am curious about how the world works, I find myself
being beyond the stupid, when my mind urges me to do some workout
instead of sitting in the chair and reading about Doppler
Effect. Man! Workout and Doppler Effect, that's a great difference.

I tend to think, "Well, I need math and physics because I can't do
anything else". But the truth is, that is just an excuse. I am not
that "genius" at all; Paul Erdos was one of those geniuses who could
do only mathematics. Well, I am interested in many things. I just did
the pool for the first time on Wednesday this week, and I loved it
very much!

I love ping pong, skiing, volleyball... I think
I am a sports maniac; like, everyone is going home, while I am still
full of energy :) I want to buy a poster of Kramer from Seinfeld.
I love The Cosby Show and all those classic comdies.

Maybe all the passions that I had on mathematics were not true, but
merely an assumption that allowed myself to be a math geek. Maybe
there is no such thing as passion for mathematics. A person who says
that s/he is passionate about mathematics is either

(1). s/he is trying to convince him/herself that s/he is one of those
geniuses. (It does not matter if s/he IS one of those; the point is,
like, s/he is trying to avoid the Physical Education class by
claiming that his/her talent for science makes him/her a scholar.)

(2). s/he has never tried anything new. (I love to do new things,
actually.)

If G.H. Hardy had belonged to a cricket club, then he would not have
had to write "A Mathematician's Apology".

If Galois had gone out with people of his generation, he may have
made a more reasonable choice.

If Yutaka Taniyama had tried to do a lot of new things, then how
could he have made a suicide?

Gauss was indeed lonely. He should not have depended on stipends from
the Duke.

It is inconceivable that Abel had to ride on a slay (his death ride),
if he had not been interested in mathematics so much. I think Abel's
teacher, on the whole, made Abel's life worse.

Sophie Germain could have married to a guy, before dying by
breast cancer.

Paul Erdos could have had his own epsilons, somewhat finding out
a woman whom he could see as not only a woman, but more than that.

John Nash even did not have to be schizophrenia.

Oh, I am really sad, since I can not see my college's
women's volleyball team's next game.

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