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Mathematical maturity is like pornography: I don't know what it is, but I know it when I see it.
John P. D'Angelo (mathematician)A mathematician is mature up to the point where he becomes interested in mathematics.
Vladimir I. Arnol'd (mathematician)I believe that a scientist looking at nonscientific problems is just as dumb as the next guy.
Richard Feynman (physicist)Mathematics is the queen of the sciences.
Carl Friedrich Gauss (mathematician)What I look forward to is continued immaturity followed by death.
Dave Barry (comic)I, specifically, arrived at NYU intent on achieving a double major in film and … physics. Once I was informed of the required workload, especially the number of math classes I would have to take, I abandoned my scientific aspirations on the spot and focused my energy on filmmaking.
Nicolas Falacci (filmmaker)Chapter Overview
What is mathematical maturity? How can we identify it? Perhaps more importantly, how can we recognize when it is not there, and then determine to do something about it? These are essential questions for any mathematics teacher, and ones that we must learn together to answer.
Mathematical maturity is elusive: We know what it is, but we do not know how to say what it is. It is important that we find explicit ways to describe it, to discuss it, and to come to terms with it. One of our goals is to recognize students who have the potential for mathematical maturity, and then to set them on the road to achieving it.
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