Advantage Quote by Andrew Wiles
“Mathematics... is a bit like discovering oil. ... But mathematics has one great advantage over oil, in that no one has yet ... found a way that you can keep using the same oil forever.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: BBC Radio 4, 2015
Mathematics is a finite resource that cannot be endlessly reused, unlike oil, which can be depleted.
In simple terms: Math is limited, unlike endless oil.
Key Takeaway
Seek new problems and methods continuously.
Themes
creativity
limits
resource management
innovation
Mood
thoughtful
inquisitive
Type
academic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- research
- education
- policy planning
- resource allocation
Key Concepts
finite resources
knowledge
sustainability
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we ensure continual mathematical progress?
- What parallels exist between resource scarcity and knowledge?
A Different Perspective
Mathematics can be extended through abstraction, challenging the limit claim.
![“d] One speaks in a language one doesn't understand, uses money whose worth one does not know, and wanders down streets for the very first time. One knows the old I, with all it learned, is completely useless in the face of these new challenges - and begins discovering that, buried deep down in…” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ad0/paulo-coelho-10_first-time_d-one-speaks-in-a-language-one-doesn-t-u_22439.jpg)
![“Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then [these?], any man might instantly use what another had invented; so that the inventor had no special advantage from his own invention. The patent system changed this…” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/449/abraham-lincoln-88_adoption_next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in_1828.jpg)
