> we urgently need to come up with good ways of explaining the value of having a large pool of human mathematical experts, even if it is no longer part of their role to find new proofs of theorems.
This is the main issue, and while I fully agree with that value sentiment, the Fields medallists’ letter failed to provide convincing arguments for why mathematicians should widely receive funding for merely understanding things, and how competition for postdoc and tenure positions would work under these circumstances.
Reminder that the federal government spends over $1.5 trillion annually on Social Security, the vast majority to people who 1) didn't put in as much as they are now getting and 2) spend their day watching TV or socializing and cooking food. 25% of our federal budget is paid to people that contribute nothing while the rest of us work our asses off to pay into a system which will likely collapse by the time we retire.
Mathematicians getting funded only do 0.0001% of the leeching that retirees do.
layer8 · · focus · HN ↗
This is the main issue, and while I fully agree with that value sentiment, the Fields medallists’ letter failed to provide convincing arguments for why mathematicians should widely receive funding for merely understanding things, and how competition for postdoc and tenure positions would work under these circumstances.
ceasesurthinko · · focus · HN ↗
Mathematicians getting funded only do 0.0001% of the leeching that retirees do.