On some trends of math development

1. Entity type Lemma
2. Original titleО некоторых тенденциях развития математики
3. Language term Russian
4. lemma author Saprykin, Dmitry
5. lemma category Scientific theories and disciplines > Mathematics
6. Publication date 2014
7. lemma work Шафаревич Игорь Ростиславович [Author]. On some trends of math development
8. lemma manifestations О некоторых тенденциях развития математики. : On some trends of math development. Lecture at the official Heinemann award ceremony at Gettingen Academy of Science
9. Keywords religion and mathematics
10. Citations
    1. http://www.rusinst.ru/docs/books/I.R.Shafarevich-PSS_T5.pdf
11. Lemma body

    1. In his lecture the author tries to find an answer to the question: could there be a unified goal in the historical development of math as a science and what is this goal?

       Shafarevich detects math itself to never set any goal unlike physics which has been since Newton trying to build a unified world system and to enclose the whole Universe in several plain laws. The math development is more like a crystal growth or a gas diffusion which may dilate without bound until encounter exterior hindrance.

       However such a way of development of math as a science disagrees with a sense of meaningfulness and beauty we irresistibly feel when gain in touch with math, as the author finds. Shafarevich discerns some inner logic in the math historical evolution as if a work of a single intellect continuously and systematically developing its thought and using the diversity of human individuals as a medium.

       It is hard to imagine math would be able to develop eternally, writes the author, without knowing what it explores neither why it explores. Being unable itself to formulate the ultimate goal which can navigate its development math should therefore borrow it from the outside.

       Shafarevich designates two basic trends to find solution. First, one may try to extract the math goal from its practical application. But we can hardly believe the higher – spiritual activity – to find its justification in the lower – material activity. Since we reject this option there is only one alternative: religion, as a higher realm of human activity rather than the lower, can provide a goal for math.

       The author believes such a lack of goals and form, which is clearly distinguished in math development, refers to almost all the life spheres of contemporary humankind trapped in the hectic “progress”. The human spiritual constitution does not allow him to condone with the lack of goal and sense and makes him seek for substitutes, surrogates. “We all know a sample of it; - writes the author, - when making broken the connection with the God of love and mercy people had right away created for themselves other goddess calling for millions of human victims”.

       Math, reminds the author, had shaped as a science in the Pythagoreans’ religious union, where it was a part of their religion and had a clear goal: to be the way of merger with the Divine through the perception of the world harmony expressed in numeric harmony. It was that time that math properties to manifest more distinctly than wherever the all-mankind tendencies had already revealed. That is why math has served as a model to work out basic principles of deductive science.

       Shafarevich hopes, math could also serve as a model to solve the main problem of our epoch: to gain the highest religious aim and sense of the humankind cultural activity.