tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post5827820234364895865..comments2023-11-05T03:45:25.001-08:00Comments on God Plays Dice: Mathematicians in politics?Michael Lugohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15671307315028242949noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-53176095344250488822010-04-10T21:35:50.599-07:002010-04-10T21:35:50.599-07:00As Daniel Andrés pointed before, two Colombian pol...As Daniel Andrés pointed before, two Colombian politicians (Sergio Fajardo and Antanas Mockus)are mathematicians. They are now running for presidency (Fajardo as VP), and have gained a fighting chance after they had been considered utopic.Rodrigohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14699750364353947906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-46388987250144459912009-09-15T01:09:45.959-07:002009-09-15T01:09:45.959-07:00Ismael Alazhary, first head of the Republic of Sud...Ismael Alazhary, first head of the Republic of Sudan after its independence from Britain in 1956, was a professor of Mathematics in the University of Khartoum at least for some time before being a full time politician.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-81764221313222395402008-07-26T14:33:00.000-07:002008-07-26T14:33:00.000-07:00Joseph Fourier, as in Fourier analysis, was a Fren...Joseph Fourier, as in Fourier analysis, was a French "prefect" from 1801 to 1815, a position roughly equivalent to being the Governer of an American State, albeit appointed not elected. He is generally regarded as having been very successful at the job.<BR/><BR/>Laplace was also appointed to an even more senior role (something like Minister of the Interior), but dismissed by Napoleon after a few months with the observation that he brought the "concept of the infinitely small" into public administration.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-24950613160285459292008-07-26T14:19:00.000-07:002008-07-26T14:19:00.000-07:00Sorry to have disturbed your choice to forget abou...Sorry to have disturbed your choice to forget about Chalabi. --anon 1:49Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-15594882055534544992008-07-26T09:38:00.000-07:002008-07-26T09:38:00.000-07:00Kurt, you may enjoy the article I mentioned in my ...Kurt, you may enjoy the article I mentioned in my previous comment, the author addresses exactly the problem with math education that bothered you so much.mishahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01166708933155105921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-25067087831085584902008-07-25T22:53:00.000-07:002008-07-25T22:53:00.000-07:00...France, that wonderful country... Vladimir Arno...<I>...France, that wonderful country...</I> <A HREF="http://pauli.uni-muenster.de/~munsteg/arnold.html" REL="nofollow">Vladimir Arnold</A> is a bit more skeptical about the state of affairs in French mathematics. The scarcity of mathematicians in politics is probably a blessing in disguise, because, while having more capacity to understand some finer points in economics and other quantitative matters, professional mathematicians are notoriously short of <I>the common sense</I>, that elusive quality, which is so important in politics.mishahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01166708933155105921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-88934297299379988582008-07-25T20:33:00.000-07:002008-07-25T20:33:00.000-07:00Thanks, people who pointed me to "Math for the Mil...Thanks, people who pointed me to "Math for the Million" in the comments on a previous post. I just ordered it, I think I'll start with Courant and Robbins. "What Is Mathematics?" <BR/><BR/>In his 2001 review of What is Mathematics, <A HREF="http://ascc.artsci.wustl.edu/~bblank/" REL="nofollow">Brian E. Blank</A> sums up my feelings exactly, "I was aware that geometry derived from Thales, Pythagoras, and Euclid. Whether or not any geometric theorems were discovered after Euclid I could not say. That algebra and trigonometry were the results of conscious development would no more have occurred to me than the idea that the English language was the creation of dedicated professional linguists."<BR/><BR/><BR/>How anyone ever learned anything before wikipedia and amazon.com I will never know... i suppose they just used google....Kurt Osishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08186216783828286206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-26872830522403201822008-07-25T19:41:00.000-07:002008-07-25T19:41:00.000-07:00Hari Seldon was a professor at Streeling Universit...Hari Seldon was a professor at Streeling University ;-)<BR/><BR/>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hari_SeldonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-76239359952519455412008-07-25T14:52:00.000-07:002008-07-25T14:52:00.000-07:00Emile Borel was not only member of the French Nati...Emile Borel was not only member of the French National Assembly, but was also minister of Marine in 1925.<BR/>Faustin Touadera (the actual prime minister of the Central African Republic) holds a Ph. D. in Mathematics and has taught Mathematics at the University of Bangui for many years.Hany M. El-Hosseinyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12899975758572252069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-5822237641323526202008-07-25T13:58:00.000-07:002008-07-25T13:58:00.000-07:00anon 1:49,I think somewhere in the back of my mind...anon 1:49,<BR/><BR/>I think somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that about Chalabi, but I had chosen to forget it.Michael Lugohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15671307315028242949noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-38445445751074477252008-07-25T13:08:00.000-07:002008-07-25T13:08:00.000-07:00In the Chalabi category of 'mathematicians who, th...In the Chalabi category of 'mathematicians who, thank goodness, did NOT become heads of state' is Boris Berezovsky, Russian oligarch and former mathematician who was especially close to the top during the Yeltsin years. <BR/><BR/>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_BerezovskySuresh Venkatasubramanianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15898357513326041822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-53364542451644524912008-07-25T12:44:00.000-07:002008-07-25T12:44:00.000-07:00In Colombia the best majors of the two more impota...In Colombia the best majors of the two more impotant cities (Bogotá and Medellín) were mathematicians and professors of the most representative universities in the country: Sergio Fajardo (Medellín) and Antanas Maockus (Bogotá).<BR/><BR/>BTW, Sergio Fajardo is also a probabilist.Daniel Andréshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06516170604765651879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-24980002763167338072008-07-25T11:30:00.000-07:002008-07-25T11:30:00.000-07:00jesse: "was"? Has he stopped since spring 2007 wh...jesse: "was"? Has he stopped since spring 2007 when I saw him giving lectures at Yale?<BR/><BR/>Oh, and anonymous 1:49 scooped me on Chalabi.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-48730506244959539572008-07-25T11:26:00.000-07:002008-07-25T11:26:00.000-07:00I'd hate to start any mathematician / physicist tr...I'd hate to start any mathematician / physicist trash-talking, but the NYT had an <A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/science/10phys.html" REL="nofollow">amusing article</A> a couple months ago about the three physicists currently in Congress.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-51521416963895316872008-07-25T10:59:00.000-07:002008-07-25T10:59:00.000-07:00I don't know if this counts, but Alexander Lubotzk...I don't know if this counts, but Alexander Lubotzky was a member of the Knesset (Israel's parliment) for a year or two while he was still teaching.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-24695454700159493442008-07-25T10:49:00.000-07:002008-07-25T10:49:00.000-07:00He's not a head of state, though many thought he'd...He's not a head of state, though many thought he'd become one and perhaps he still will, but Ahmed Chalabi earned a Ph.D in mathematics from the University of Chicago in 1969. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_ChalabiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-86357879810102826812008-07-25T10:41:00.000-07:002008-07-25T10:41:00.000-07:00Brentano become President of the Republic of Czech...Brentano become President of the Republic of Czechoslovakia(from 1918 to 1935),<BR/>Russel was active in politics in later years.<BR/>and of course Leibniz, Aristotle, ...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-264226589944705290.post-74959065875940219322008-07-25T10:28:00.000-07:002008-07-25T10:28:00.000-07:00Here in the United States, for example in my nativ...<EM>Here in the United States, for example in my native city of Philadelphia, we name streets after mathematical objects, namely the positive integers.</EM><BR/><BR/>That was very funny! :D You have a very good sense of humor!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com