Class Quote by Eric Temple Bell
“Archimedes, Newton, and Gauss, these three, are in a class by themselves among the great mathematicians, and it is not for ordinary mortals to attempt to range them in order of merit.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Men of Mathematics, Eric Temple Bell, 1937
He claims that Archimedes, Newton, and Gauss are incomparable geniuses, beyond ordinary ranking.
In simple terms: Three mathematicians are uniquely brilliant.
Key Takeaway
Study their works for inspiration.
Themes
genius
mathematics
history
Mood
admiring
inspirational
Type
academic
historical
When to use this quote
- education
- research
- STEM inspiration
- historical study
Key Concepts
great minds
comparative excellence
Questions to Reflect On
- What makes a mathematician 'great'?
- How to foster similar brilliance today?
A Different Perspective
Ranking may undervalue other contributions.
![“For other great mathematicians or philosophers, he [Gauss] used the epithets magnus, or clarus, or clarissimus; for Newton alone he kept the prefix summus.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/e97/anonymous-1_epithet_for-other-great-mathematicians-or-philos_222162.jpg)
![“The full impact of the Lobachevskian method of challenging axioms has probably yet to be felt. It is no exaggeration to call Lobachevsky the Copernicus of Geometry [as did Clifford], for geometry is only a part of the vaster domain which he renovated; it might even be just to designate him as a…” quote by Eric Temple Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a75/eric-temple-bell-26465_challenges_the-full-impact-of-the-lobachevskian-met_272905.jpg)
![“[As a young teenager] Galois read [Legendre's] geometry from cover to cover as easily as other boys read a pirate yarn.” quote by Eric Temple Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/377/eric-temple-bell-26465_books_as-a-young-teenager-galois-read-legendre_645854.jpg)
![“Poincaré [was] the last man to take practically all mathematics, pure and applied, as his province. ... Few mathematicians have had the breadth of philosophic vision that Poincaré had, and none in his superior in the gift of clear exposition.” quote by Eric Temple Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/3f5/eric-temple-bell-26465_clear_poincar-was-the-last-man-to-take-practic_880815.jpg)
