Even as we use experimental science and mathematical logic to reveal the laws and structure of the physical universe, a series of important questions will always remain, including the sources of those laws and the reason for there being a universe in the first place.
~ Kenneth Miller ~ from his book
Finding Darwin's God
I have always loved mathematics: arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus. I love it all. At one point, I thought about majoring in mathematics, but decided that I would be happier in the arts. Is that true? Probably. But I still love mathematics.
Math describes the order of the universe. For the early mathematicians, the study attempted to understand God. While it may not reveal a personal God to all of us, it does describe the order that exists in all things.
Maybe that is why I like to balance my checkbook to the penny.
That...and the fact that I run it so close, I have to be sure it balances so I don't overdraw.
Posts
8 comments:
I am going to really have to stretch myself to see God in math, as I H-A-T-E it!
I always loved math too. maybe because there was no ambiguity. at least at the levels i took. and i think i read something once about how pi relates to the universe. and, of course, i love the other pie too.
me again. 3/14 is international pi day. i guess they're celebrating pi but i celebrate pie too.
Math was okay until I got into trigonometry and could not stretch my brain any farther to comprehend it. I am one of those who has to account for every penny in my checkbook, too. Maybe that is the bookkeeper in me!
But I've always thought math and art are impossible, each without the other. The Greeks certainly thought so, basing all their magnificent structures, even their sculptures on the Golden Mean. Oh, thanks so much for bringing this up, and giving me such a nice puzzle to think--and dream--about as I head for bed and a soft pillow. The chambered nautilus already dances in my head where sugar plums might have been...
Math is the underlying principle; however, I don't think one needs to know how to do the calculations in order to do art. Artists see the math (ratios, angles, proportions) without having to do the calculations. I see the actual manipulations of numbers as being able to understand what is behind the curtain.
You might enjoy checking out books on quantum physics and how it relates to the universe/God, if you haven't already. Fascinating stuff.
Being married to a math teacher, I've learned to appreciate its beauty and magic. My brain left to its own devices would wallow in pictures and words.
Post a Comment