Philosophy

The sort of mathematics that a typical student may come across revolves around memorizing equations, tricks, and formulas. Logic of Mathematics doesn't intend to entirely snub this structure of learning — however, we believe it doesn't tell the full story. When a student narrows mathematics down to memorizing an equation and plugging in numbers, they are not only abandoning the opportunity to see mathematics as a form of exploration, but they are more likely to become stumped and confused when that formula does not provide them understanding.

Writing proofs and learning logical structures will not guarantee understanding — but we believe an appreciation for mathematics does not come without this.

Origin story

As the founder of the project realized their love for mathematics and began to read undergraduate textbooks, they realized that the sort of mathematics a researcher deals with and the mathematics they were learning in the secondary school classrooms seemed to belong to entirely different structures. And the interesting part? The founder hated learning math in their math classrooms, even though they were utterly enthralled with solving problems and making discoveries on their own time. If they had not spent time on their own studying the field, they may have ended up like thousands of young students: hating mathematics, believing it is useless and unproductive. They knew they were not alone in this regard; after speaking with plenty of students, they realized just how many people had developed a distaste for math as a whole.

Their solution? To show others what mathematics could really be like, if a student was given the opportunity to truly think.

So what?

For many students these days, even if the opportunity to learn something new sounds tempting, if it doesn't give them an A in their class, they don't want it. However, learning how to write proofs and interact creatively with mathematics goes beyond just a headstart in a career for mathematics. It provokes critical thought and establishes skills that extend across a variety of fields. When a student is asked to explain rather than to regurgitate, they are learning to interact with their material in an entirely different way than they are used to. When they stumble upon a problem with an unfamiliar structure, they are able to cross-reference different concepts to come up with a unique solution.

More importantly, they may grow to love a subject that is everywhere, in every part of the world.

"Without mathematics, there's nothing you can do. Everything around you is mathematics. Everything around you is numbers." — Shakuntala Devi