It is not of the essence of mathematics to be conversant with the ideas of number and quantity.
Interpretation
Mathematics transcends mere numbers and quantities, embodying deeper concepts and ideas.
This quote by George Boole suggests that mathematics is not limited to the study of numbers and quantities, but instead encompasses a broader scope of ideas, principles, and relationships. It emphasizes that mathematics involves logical reasoning, structures, and abstract thought, which can be applied beyond the confines of numerical interpretation.
In practice
A teacher explaining the nature of mathematics in a seminar.
To unfold the secret laws and relations of those high faculties of thought by which all beyond the merely perceptive knowledge of the world and of ourselves is attained or matured, is a object which does not stand in need of commendation to a rational mind.
No matter how correct a mathematical theorem may appear to be, one ought never to be satisfied that there was not something imperfect about it until it also gives the impression of being beautiful.
I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee or a ragout.
Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are dead.
As soon as you believe that a label you've put on yourself is true, you've limited something that is literally limitless, you've limited who you are into nothing but a thought.
The fact that astronomies change while the stars abide is a true analogy of every realm of human life and thought, religion not least of all. No existent theology can be a final formulation of spiritual truth.
In Nicaragua, liberty, equality and the rule of law were the stuff of dreams. But in Paris I discovered the value of those words.
Being a unique superpower undermines the military intelligence of strategy. To think strategically, one has to imagine oneself in the enemy's place. If one cannot do this, it is impossible to foresee, to take by surprise, to outflank. Misinterpreting an enemy can lead to defeat. This is how empires fall.
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