Ramanujan and Partitions (extra footage)

NUMBERPHILE

Videos by Brady Haran

[shadow]

"It is through logic that we prove, but through intuition that we discover."
-Henri Poincaré

[adamgray]

"Then where would we be? In a humanities department." James Grime is an absolute savage XD

[SpinR]

"In the humanities department"
Shots fired XD

[tomwhiteley]

"a humanities department, that's where we'd be!" - this quote will be on my gravestone. no explanation, but people will know

[TheGamblermusic]

like Mozart, died so young yet achieved so much.

[psyk]

1:17 "Without proof, it's just opinion"
*Triggered*

[HeavenlyTennyo]

I miss James! It's so lovely to see him on Numberphile again. More vids working together, please! :D

[EGarrett]

From what I've heard, Ramanujan's formula for the partition function is insane and uses transcendental numbers and all kinds of other super-advanced math, and no one but him in the world could have come up with it. So how about a video explaining some of that formula?

[col]

>in a humanities department

zing!

[kennethflorek]

Don't be too hard on Hardy for a lot of reasons. If it weren't for G. H. Hardy, and his mathematical inclinations, it is most likely S. Ramanujan would have remained obscure in India, which would be unfortunate. The "cool identities" style of mathematics was passing out of favor at the time, and Hardy was unusual among mathematicians of high reputation in appreciating and cultivating them. One of the things Hardy said about how he decided the letter he got was worth considering is that charlatans who could create unknown, interesting and plausible identities must be rarer than talented mathematicians. But Hardy was the type that would have known if these identities were unknown, and whether they were believable or obvious. Hardy said he took the trouble to prove a few of the identities that were along the lines of things he himself had done, and succeeded with difficultly. How could a pretender know that they were right, and difficult?

I have read some about G. H. Hardy (who was a mathematical star of his time), and he did not care to slog through to the very end of proofs (where things get routine and boring), if avoidable, or much less than that, if avoidable. He would involved himself with a stupendously industrious and talented collaborator who didn't mind, but rather appreciated what Hardy could do. Once Hardy had the insights that got Hardy to the point where he thought another mathematician could carry on, that was enough. I think Hardy saw in Ramamujan some one who operated at the magical level Hardy strived to operate, so once he saw Ramanujan was the real thing, he was happy to become his advocate, but not the drudge to find the proofs. I doubt that Hardy cared personally that Ramanujan didn't have proofs, only that he didn't have enough proof and might therefore go wrong. No journal, of course, would publish any such thing, but who cares?

 S. Ramanujan performed daily rituals to a particular female Hindu deity who as a result, he claimed, delivered mathematical treasures to him in the night to be written out during the waking hours. Ramanujan was lucky to have found Hardy, and so been able to do only mathematics, because there were not many like Hardy. Hardy was still luckier to have found Ramanujan, while it lasted. Hardy was an evangelizing atheist (and open atheism was frowned upon in his era) who saw magic in mathematics. I am sure there was no greater joy to that atheist than to have been the witness to what was to him real magic.

[trunxkuntrunxkun]

+Numberphile2 you guys actually make me want to study maths. Thanks for all your work and inspiration.

[capitalist]

"...in the Humanities Department. That's where we'd be." BWAHHHahahaha!!!! Shots fired.

[capitalist]

Oops, mine was like the 8th "shots fired" post, lol.

[amitprakashjha]

Yesterday was Ramanujan's birthday 22nd December

[adityakhanna]

Hey, could you do a movie review of it... just because?

[DRD]

I think Ramanujan knew a lot about humanities!

[hjkl]

Don't you mean without proof we would be in the Economics department?

[desertshield]

How dare you! In the humanities department... :.D

[Strider]

What if instead of finding Infinity or know it.

Split it?

[pegy]

Always dissing on humanities. Some of us are just more comfortable with gray areas! But it's nice to see both sides of the maths 'equation' presented: intuition and rigor. What I always got in school was the rigor side, which was not inspiring.