A former hedge fund quant is exposing the dark side of our growing dependence on algorithms

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oh god... cathy o'neil... Weapons of Math Destruction... she just gave a talk about it last week
 
Some mathematicians actively search for problems where they can apply the mathematical tools whereas some look to solve problems and incidentally happen to use maths in the process.
Actually, it's more serious than we all thought.

The biologist says "I study the principles of life."
The psychologist says "You are controlled by the principles of life."

The businessman says "My business can use its force to control the economy."
The economist says "The forces of the economy will control your business."

The engineer says: "My equations are a model of the universe."
The physicist says: "The universe is a model of my equations."

The mathematician says: "I don't care."

//
We are all doomed.
42
 
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A tragedy of mathematics is a beautiful conjecture ruined by an ugly fact.

A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there.



Actually, it's more serious than we all thought.

The biologist says "I study the principles of life."
The psychologist says "You are controlled by the principles of life."

The businessman says "My business can use its force to control the economy."
The economist says "The forces of the economy will control your business."

The engineer says: "My equations are a model of the universe."
The physicist says: "The universe is a model of my equations."

The mathematician says: "I don't care."

//
We are all doomed.
42
 
A tragedy of mathematics is a beautiful conjecture ruined by an ugly fact.

A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there.
You are confusing maths and physics.
Trained mathematicians can prove or disprove that the cat is real or not and if it is unique or not.
What the biologists do with this fact is of no concern.

The physicist would assume that the PDE exists and has a unique solution and model the real world around it.
 
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Indeed Daniel.
"Physicists defer only to mathematicians, mathematicians defer only to God"



You are confusing maths and physics.
Trained mathematicians can prove or disprove that the cat is real or nit and if it is unique or not.
What the biologists do with this fact is of no concern.

The physicist would assume that the PDE exists and has a unique solution and model the real world around it.
 
Indeed Daniel.
"Physicists defer only to mathematicians, mathematicians defer only to God"

Think it's paraphrasing what was said about the Lowells and the Cabots:

"And this is good old Boston,
The home of the bean and the cod.
Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots,
And the Cabots talk only to God."
 
Think it's paraphrasing what was said about the Lowells and the Cabots:

"And this is good old Boston,
The home of the bean and the cod.
Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots,
And the Cabots talk only to God."

Which language? King Charles V used many
"I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men and German to my horse."

The old timers used to write maths in Latin.
http://eulerarchive.maa.org//docs/originals/E053.pdf
 
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