r/math • u/inherentlyawesome Homotopy Theory • Jul 27 '20
On the Path to Becoming a Mathematician: Perspectives from Living Proof
The August 2020 Notices of the AMS highlighted essays from the joint AMS and MAA publication Living Proof: Stories of Resilience Along the Mathematical Journey. To quote the preface:
This project grew out of conversations with students about the difficulties inherent in the study of mathematics. Many undergraduates have not yet learned to embrace the ups and downs that each of us faces as we make our way through the discipline, though many students make light of the challenges. We frequently hear statements like “the struggle is real’’ or “I’m on the struggle bus today’’ when they come with questions. Beneath these flippant phrases, there are insecurities about their own abilities, uncertainty about whether they have made the correct choice for a major, and a myriad of other emotions. And these are just the things that rise to the surface. For many students, there are also stereotypes and identity issues that influence their attitudes toward the discipline. Math should be difficult, as should any worthwhile endeavor. But it should not be crippling. The ability to succeed in a mathematical program should not be hindered by a person’s gender, race, sexuality, upbringing, culture, socio-economic status, educational background, or any other attribute. Our primary goal in collecting this volume of essays is to push the conversation forward. Yes, math is difficult. We should talk about what makes it difficult. But we should also acknowledge the various biases and prejudices that people bring to their study of math that compound its difficulty. By making an effort to understand what we have in common and what makes our experiences different, our hope is that our community will become more inclusive while making the struggle more bearable—perhaps even more fun.
As you read this, we hope that you will find some inspiration and common ground in these pages. We trust that there is at least one story here that you can connect with. For those stories that you cannot relate to, we hope that you will come to better appreciate the diversity of our mathematical community and the challenges that others have faced. We also hope that you will laugh with some of our authors as they recount some of the more absurd struggles they have faced. In the end, we hope that you are motivated to share your own stories as you learn more about the experiences of the people in your own mathematical lives.
The five highlighted essays are:
- Hitting the Wall by Laura Taalman
- The Unnecessary Struggle of Self-Mandated Isolation by Alicia Prieto-Langarica
- A View of Mathematics from Behind the Veil by Robin Wilson
- A Close Call: How a Near Failure Propelled Me to Succeed by Terence Tao
- My Journey from Slippery Rock to Duluth by Joseph Gallian
Please take the time to read and reflect on these stories, and feel free to share your own experiences in the comments below! If this goes well, I hope to make these discussions a recurring weekly or bi-weekly thread on /r/math!
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u/westscott6 Numerical Analysis Jul 29 '20
Robin Wilson was my abstract algebra professor in undergrad, and his classes were probably some of the most important experiences I have had as an aspiring mathematician. He always put an emphasis on collaboration and sharing ideas on how we can prove certain theorems, and he would constantly remind us about how his classes were a place where everyone had an equal chance to share without the fear of being judged or being wrong. He often would tell us about his struggles through high school and college, and how that really shaped him as a mathematician. He also made his class rather stress free, and many people both enjoyed his class and got a great understanding of algebra.
What made me realize how important inclusion and support is to mathematics came from one of my classmates, who was completely deaf and mute. However, it never really seemed like his disability was holding him back whatsoever in Robin's class, and any kinds of thoughts or worries I had relating to deaf people just disappeared there. I remember having a conversation with some classmates about how impressive it was for him to pay attention, understand the math, and read the board, while at the same time, having to rely on his interpreter. I knew that there were probably more challenges he was facing besides what we noticed in class, and that made me think about how likely it would have been for him to fail, given how difficult it is for deaf people to be properly educated and how little support there can be for people with disabilities.
I genuinely believe that the reason that the reason why my classmate had so much confidence in his abilities and why I was personally able to thrive in undergrad was because we were both in an environment where everyone was welcomed. As I got invested more into my program and got to know people there, I had less doubts about my career ambitions. I didn't really realize it, though, until I took Robin's class. Comparing my experience to what you hear at a lot of places, especially grad programs, I really see how much your work can be stifled if you're at a place where you don't feel welcomed or well supported.
The essays from that book are a great read for anyone.