--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am accustomed, as a professional…" description: "\"I am accustomed, as a professional mathematician, to living in a sort of vacuum, surrounded by people who declare with an odd sort of pride that they a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/david-mumford-39029_accustomed_i-am-accustomed-as-a-professional-mathem_307654.png" --- # I am accustomed, as a professional mathematician, to… ![“I am accustomed, as a professional mathematician, to living in a sort of vacuum, surrounded by people who declare with an odd sort of pride that they are mathematically illiterate.” quote by David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/david-mumford-39029_accustomed_i-am-accustomed-as-a-professional-mathem_307654.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/david-mumford-39029_accustomed_i-am-accustomed-as-a-professional-mathem_307654.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/david-mumford-39029_accustomed_i-am-accustomed-as-a-professional-mathem_307654.png) > “I am accustomed, as a professional mathematician, to living in a sort of vacuum, surrounded by people who declare with an odd sort of pride that they are mathematically illiterate.” [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He describes the isolation often felt by mathematicians, highlighting both the focus it provides and the social distance it creates. **In simple terms:** Mathematicians often work in intellectual isolation. Key Takeaway Embrace solitude while seeking community. Themes intellectual solitude pride community Mood contemplative serious Type academic reflective When to use this quote - research labs - academic conferences - collaborative projects Key Concepts mathematical culture social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance deep work with social interaction? - What strategies reduce feelings of isolation? A Different Perspective Isolation can hinder collaboration and mental health. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Math](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/math/) [Mathematician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematician/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Pride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pride/) ## Related quotes > [“Height, weight and body mass index.’ Gene was skimming ahead. ‘Can’t you do the calculation yourself?’ ‘That’s the purpose of the question,’ I said.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graeme-simsion/height-weight-and-body-mass-index-gene-was-skimming-ahead-can-t-you/) [Graeme Simsion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graeme-simsion/) > [“Helen Keller became deaf, dumb, and blind shortly after birth. Despite her greatest misfortune, she has written her name indelibly in the pages of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/helen-keller-became-deaf-dumb-and-blind-shortly-after-birth-despite/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I shouldn't say bad stuff about illiterate people. I should write it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-shouldn-t-say-bad-stuff-about-illiterate-people-i-should-write-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Having a financially illiterate society is dangerous, and we have to do something about that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mellody-hobson/having-a-financially-illiterate-society-is-dangerous-and-we-have-to/) [Mellody Hobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mellody-hobson/) > [Luckily, I'm not educated. 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We should be honest in telling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/my-own-view-is-that-no-major-advance-was-ever-found-as-a-result-of-a/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [I think that mathematics can benefit by acknowledging that the creation of good models is just as important as proving deep theorems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/i-think-that-mathematics-can-benefit-by-acknowledging-that-the/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [Images of the world are Renormalization Group fixed points.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/images-of-the-world-are-renormalization-group-fixed-points/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [Algebraic geometry seems to have acquired the reputation of being esoteric, exclusive, and very abstract, with adherents who are secretly plotting to take over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/algebraic-geometry-seems-to-have-acquired-the-reputation-of-being/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [The world is a very complicated place, as babies know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/the-world-is-a-very-complicated-place-as-babies-know/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [The world is continuous, but the mind is discrete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/the-world-is-continuous-but-the-mind-is-discrete/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [Art lives on the mental plane (the real painting is not the set of dry pigments on the canvas nor is a symphony the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/art-lives-on-the-mental-plane-the-real-painting-is-not-the-set-of-dry/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [A Noah's Ark of mathematicians, their lives, loves, hard times, and madnesses, Loving and Hating Mathematics shows our community with all its warts as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/a-noah-s-ark-of-mathematicians-their-lives-loves-hard-times-and/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [Logic has virtually nothing to do with the way we think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/logic-has-virtually-nothing-to-do-with-the-way-we-think/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) > [The extreme possibilities are the most illuminating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mumford/the-extreme-possibilities-are-the-most-illuminating/) [David Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) [Explore all 11 David Mumford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mumford/) ## More Accustomed quotes > [We are puzzled and bewildered whenever we see suffering in this world because we have become accustomed to the mercy and the long-suffering of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/we-are-puzzled-and-bewildered-whenever-we-see-suffering-in-this-world/) [R. 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