--- title: "1 Mathematics Natural Quotes By John D. Barrow" description: "1 Mathematics Natural quotes by John D. Barrow. Plus more from John D. Barrow and more Mathematics Natural sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/john-d-barrow-4552_mathematics_non-euclidean-became-a-byword-for-non-ab_585423.png" --- > [“Non-Euclidean' became a byword for non-absolute knowledge. It also served to illustrate most vividly the gap between mathematics and the natural world. Mathematics was much bigger than physical reality. There were mathematical systems that described aspects of Nature, but there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/non-euclidean-became-a-byword-for-non-absolute-knowledge-it-also/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/255/john-d-barrow-4552_mathematics_non-euclidean-became-a-byword-for-non-ab_585423.png) ## More by John D. Barrow > [“One of Nature's deep secrets is the fact that the outcomes of the laws of Nature do not have to possess the same symmetries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/one-of-nature-s-deep-secrets-is-the-fact-that-the-outcomes-of-the/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“The effect of the 'time becomes space' proposal is that there is no definite moment or point of creation. In more conventional quantum mechanical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/the-effect-of-the-time-becomes-space-proposal-is-that-there-is-no/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“Humans are distinguished further by the highly effective way in which they have pooled the individual intelligence of single individuals to produce a collective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/humans-are-distinguished-further-by-the-highly-effective-way-in-which/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [We can predict the present without having to know everything about the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/we-can-predict-the-present-without-having-to-know-everything-about/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [All our surest statements about the nature of the world are mathematical statements, yet we do not know what mathematics "is"... and so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/all-our-surest-statements-about-the-nature-of-the-world-are/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“If the deep logic of what determines the value of the fine-structure constant also played a significant role in our understanding of all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/if-the-deep-logic-of-what-determines-the-value-of-the-fine-structure/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“Each of us is a complicated assymetrical outcome of the laws of electromagnetism and gravity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/each-of-us-is-a-complicated-assymetrical-outcome-of-the-laws-of/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“Impressed by the success of high-level mathematics in the formulation of the general theory of relativity in 1915, we find that Einstein's life-long quest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/impressed-by-the-success-of-high-level-mathematics-in-the-formulation/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“Jewish philosopher Martin Buber, who died in 1965, wrote of how the mere thought of the infinite led him to contemplate suicide: “A necessity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/jewish-philosopher-martin-buber-who-died-in-1965-wrote-of-how-the/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“As we look way back into the first instants of the Big Bang, we find the quantum world that we described in Chapter 3.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/as-we-look-way-back-into-the-first-instants-of-the-big-bang-we-find/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“The inclusion of just one contradiction (like 0 = 1) in an axiomatic system allows any statement about the objects in the system to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/the-inclusion-of-just-one-contradiction-like-0-1-in-an-axiomatic/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [Once upon a time when there was no time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/once-upon-a-time-when-there-was-no-time/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“Life as we know, and partially understand it, is a classical example of what can occur when a sufficient level of complexity is attained.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/life-as-we-know-and-partially-understand-it-is-a-classical-example-of/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [“There is no formula that can deliver all truth, all harmony, all simplicity. No Theory of Everything can ever provide total insight. For, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/there-is-no-formula-that-can-deliver-all-truth-all-harmony-all/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) > [History is full of people who thought they were right -- absolutely right, completely right, without a shadow of a doubt. And because history…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-barrow/history-is-full-of-people-who-thought-they-were-right-absolutely/) [John D. Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-barrow/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics-natural/john-d-barrow/#itemlist", "name": "1 Mathematics Natural Quotes By John D. Barrow", "numberOfItems": 1, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Non-Euclidean' became a byword for non-absolute knowledge. It also served to illustrate most vividly the gap between mathematics and the natural world. Mathematics was much bigger than physical reality. There were mathematical systems that described aspects of Nature, but there were others that did not. Later, mathematicians would use these discoveries about geometry to discover that there were other logics as well. Aristotle's system was, like Euclid's, just one of many possibilities. Even the concept of truth was not absolute. What is false in one logical system can be true in another. In Euclid's geometry of flat surfaces, parallel lines never meet, but on curved surfaces they can. These discoveries revealed the difference between mathematics and science. Mathematics was something bigger than science, requiring only self-consistency to be valid. It contained all possible patterns of logic. Some of those patterns were followed by parts of Nature; others were not. Mathematics was open-ended, uncompleteable, infinite; the physical universe was smaller.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John D. 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