Skip to content
By using Twitter’s services you agree to our Cookies Use. We and our partners operate globally and use cookies, including for analytics, personalisation, and ads.

This is the legacy version of twitter.com. We will be shutting it down on June 1, 2020. Please switch to a supported browser, or disable the extension which masks your browser. You can see a list of supported browsers in our Help Center.

  • Home Home Home, current page.
  • About

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Language: English
    • Bahasa Indonesia
    • Bahasa Melayu
    • Català
    • Čeština
    • Dansk
    • Deutsch
    • English UK
    • Español
    • Filipino
    • Français
    • Hrvatski
    • Italiano
    • Magyar
    • Nederlands
    • Norsk
    • Polski
    • Português
    • Română
    • Slovenčina
    • Suomi
    • Svenska
    • Tiếng Việt
    • Türkçe
    • Ελληνικά
    • Български език
    • Русский
    • Српски
    • Українська мова
    • עִבְרִית
    • العربية
    • فارسی
    • मराठी
    • हिन्दी
    • বাংলা
    • ગુજરાતી
    • தமிழ்
    • ಕನ್ನಡ
    • ภาษาไทย
    • 한국어
    • 日本語
    • 简体中文
    • 繁體中文
  • Have an account? Log in
    Have an account?
    · Forgot password?

    New to Twitter?
    Sign up
MathPrinceps's profile
Laurens Gunnarsen
Laurens Gunnarsen
Laurens Gunnarsen
@MathPrinceps

Tweets

Laurens Gunnarsen

@MathPrinceps

Mathematical physicist and mentor to mathematically talented youth. Talent is that which bridges the gap between what can be taught and what must be learned.

Joined June 2012

Tweets

  • © 2020 Twitter
  • About
  • Help Center
  • Terms
  • Privacy policy
  • Imprint
  • Cookies
  • Ads info
Dismiss
Previous
Next

Go to a person's profile

Saved searches

  • Remove
  • In this conversation
    Verified accountProtected Tweets @
Suggested users
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @
  • Verified accountProtected Tweets @

Promote this Tweet

Block

  • Tweet with a location

    You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more

    Your lists

    Create a new list


    Under 100 characters, optional

    Privacy

    Copy link to Tweet

    Embed this Tweet

    Embed this Video

    Add this Tweet to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Add this video to your website by copying the code below. Learn more

    Hmm, there was a problem reaching the server.

    By embedding Twitter content in your website or app, you are agreeing to the Twitter Developer Agreement and Developer Policy.

    Preview

    Why you're seeing this ad

    Log in to Twitter

    · Forgot password?
    Don't have an account? Sign up »

    Sign up for Twitter

    Not on Twitter? Sign up, tune into the things you care about, and get updates as they happen.

    Sign up
    Have an account? Log in »

    Two-way (sending and receiving) short codes:

    Country Code For customers of
    United States 40404 (any)
    Canada 21212 (any)
    United Kingdom 86444 Vodafone, Orange, 3, O2
    Brazil 40404 Nextel, TIM
    Haiti 40404 Digicel, Voila
    Ireland 51210 Vodafone, O2
    India 53000 Bharti Airtel, Videocon, Reliance
    Indonesia 89887 AXIS, 3, Telkomsel, Indosat, XL Axiata
    Italy 4880804 Wind
    3424486444 Vodafone
    » See SMS short codes for other countries

    Confirmation

     

    Welcome home!

    This timeline is where you’ll spend most of your time, getting instant updates about what matters to you.

    Tweets not working for you?

    Hover over the profile pic and click the Following button to unfollow any account.

    Say a lot with a little

    When you see a Tweet you love, tap the heart — it lets the person who wrote it know you shared the love.

    Spread the word

    The fastest way to share someone else’s Tweet with your followers is with a Retweet. Tap the icon to send it instantly.

    Join the conversation

    Add your thoughts about any Tweet with a Reply. Find a topic you’re passionate about, and jump right in.

    Learn the latest

    Get instant insight into what people are talking about now.

    Get more of what you love

    Follow more accounts to get instant updates about topics you care about.

    Find what's happening

    See the latest conversations about any topic instantly.

    Never miss a Moment

    Catch up instantly on the best stories happening as they unfold.

    1. John Carlos Baez‏ @johncarlosbaez 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps

      I agree, Laurens. Actually it's even more complicated: true experts often like to talk to other true experts and near-experts - this is what conferences are for - but often prefer to be left alone by reporters, floundering beginners, crackpots, etc.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    2. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @johncarlosbaez

      Actually, I meant to be quite precise in my earlier remark. True experts specifically dislike expressing opinions -- partly because they fear that they may unduly bias the thinking of others, but mostly because the formulation of a public opinion is as tiresome as defending it.

      1 reply 0 retweets 3 likes
    3. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps @johncarlosbaez

      Most of the understanding of a true expert is inarticulate. It derives from a vast amount of penetrating private reflection and experimentation. The attempt to distill and express the fruit of all this effort is exhausting, and seldom brings the expert any real satisfaction.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    4. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps @johncarlosbaez

      It is simply more rewarding to exploit than to share one's expert insight. Gauss eloquently acknowledged this. "Procreare jucundum, sed parturire molestum," was his formulation: to conceive is a pleasure, but to give birth is painful. Communicating what one understands is hard.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    5. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps @johncarlosbaez

      The chore might be less onerous, were expert understanding not so different from ordinary erudition. Not only is it much less readily communicable, but its acquisition demands a devotion to private reflection that subtly isolates and alienates as it enlightens.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    6. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps @johncarlosbaez

      The trouble, alas, is that a sort of Heisenberg principle seems to apply to the public expression of expert insight: the more precise it is, the less illuminating it is; the more illuminating it is, the less precise it is. And imprecise statements engender tiresome controversy.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    7. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps @johncarlosbaez

      Newton is perhaps the signal example of a true expert whose aversion to tiresome controversy led him to refrain from attempting to express more than a tiny fraction of what he knew. But he is merely an extreme; most great masters die with most of their music still within them.

      1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
    8. John Carlos Baez‏ @johncarlosbaez 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps

      Newton is also a great example of an expert who might now be considered a crackpot for his work on alchemy and biblical chronology - the two fields that occupied him most in his later life. But standards change, so I wouldn't say someone into alchemy back then was a crackpot.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    9. Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 25 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @johncarlosbaez

      It seems to me that Newton always pursued one goal: to expose the plan of the creator of all things. He sought to know the mind of God, and had the (essentially heretical) audacity to imagine that he might succeed. He escaped Galileo's fate mostly by keeping silent.

      1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
    10. John Carlos Baez‏ @johncarlosbaez 26 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @MathPrinceps

      Yes, he would have gotten in serious trouble, possibly executed, for his unitarian beliefs back when Cambridge was repeatedly invaded by Protestants and then Catholics during the religious wars of that era!

      1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
      Laurens Gunnarsen‏ @MathPrinceps 26 Aug 2018
      • Report Tweet
      • Report NetzDG Violation
      Replying to @johncarlosbaez

      And he had powerful allies, too. Without them, he would never have been able to evade the decidedly anti-unitarian oaths of piety required to be Lucasian professor (let alone all the other even more prominent roles he subsequently played.) Even a super-genius needs some clout.

      12:59 AM - 26 Aug 2018
      • 1 Like
      • John Carlos Baez
      0 replies 0 retweets 1 like

      Loading seems to be taking a while.

      Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.

        Promoted Tweet

        false

        • © 2020 Twitter
        • About
        • Help Center
        • Terms
        • Privacy policy
        • Imprint
        • Cookies
        • Ads info