An interesting justification for silence on these matters -- and, curiously, one more common among the best elder mathematicians -- is that keeping mum prevents talented young people from wasting their time in hero-worship-motivated yet doomed and misguided attempts at imitation.
It's a gradual process of decay, I think, that was for a time largely masked by the unusual longevity of those great masters directly connected by intimate personal ties to the last generation of mathematicians whose education took place largely outside of modern institutions.
-
-
Another point worth emphasizing, though, is that there are two parties to an apprenticeship, and each must understand the purpose of the practice, and how each contributes to its success. It's not just great mentors, but also keen apprentices, who've grown gradually scarcer.
-
This is no great surprise, of course, and no one is to blame; as cultural practices come to seem obsolete and irrelevant, people forget how to engage in them. A few decades ago, every physics student knew how (and why) to use a slide rule. Now, most can't even recognize one.
- 1 more reply
New conversation -
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.