The Complexity of an Unending Cycle

 “Anyone who wastes his time writing a review of a book that he or she dislikes, is a frustrated mathematician, who has an axe to grind, and just enjoys being mean” quote by Doron Zeilberger. I always make sure that in every side of a story I see its beauty. The word ambiguity reminds me of a Taiwanese song “Ai Mei” (ambiguity). The word is the best adjective in venturing the world of the infinite. Can we define infinity? The novel is not just a story involving people but mathematics itself that is found in each and every one’s life.

Ravi Kapoor is the main character in the novel, he’s grandfather is a mathematician who gave him a math problem to try on a calculator. It was actually a fun one wherein Ravi and I appreciated the amazing effect of his grandpa’s solution. The next day his grandpa died but then realized the importance of the memory that his grandfather left him. This had an impact in the life of Ravi who is wise like his grandpa. The next chapter in Ravi’s journey was his education. He passed and entered Stanford establishing a career in economics. There was a point Ravi took a course "Thinking about Infinity" wherein he met Nico who handled the course. Coincidently like his granpa; his prof specializes in the same field. Nico's lectured on the current math topics where infinity is the star. Ravi discovered he’s confronting the same dilemmas on math and philosophy that his grandpa also faced years ago putting him into jail. Ravi has researched into his grandpa's imprisonment. He saw discussions on the philosophy of the truth’s nature, certainty as well as uncertainty and math that his grandpa conducted in jail due to a distrustful judge who challenged him to defend his principle that the certainty of mathematics is possibly extended to every bit of human knowledge.

Genes are interconnected. One can inherit the intelligence that runs in the blood from generation to generation. Indeed Ravi’s grandpa has inspired him to beat the existing beliefs that are needed to be modified. Like Ravi, I am inspired by my grandfather; who is a forester and an advocate for the environment. Sadly I didn’t have a chance to meet him, to ask him a lot of questions and specially to learn so much from him. That is why today similarly I am studying biology with the goal of protecting life in every bits of its kind. So much for that nostalgic story, let’s go back to Suri and Singh’s masterpiece. Math uses logic, the authors have pointed out philosophy for putting up arguments against certainty and uncertainties. As a philosophy 1 student for this semester in my opinion this book is open ended and that for me mathematics is uncertain till the end of time because time has always been a factor.

The book has discussed math ranging from the paradoxes of Zeno and infinitude of primes through Godel's Incompleteness which is still a challenge to mathematicians until now and Paul Cohen's theorems on consistency. I can say that the novel seizes complexity and is not afraid in unravelling the beliefs of the authors’ perspectives but there will always be downfalls. I don’t see the point of connecting mathematics and religion. The human knowledge is complex as ever but even if it doesn’t limit in imagination we again go back to time that bounds it; the time of its existence in this world.

Math dwells in the ideality but to unravel it we must first seek the pieces to form a concrete concept ∞