--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The mathematician of to-day admits that…" description: "\"The mathematician of to-day admits that he can neither square the circle, duplicate the cube or trisect the angle. May not our mechanicians, in like ma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/simon-newcomb-16581_aerial_the-mathematician-of-to-day-admits-that_2519978.jpg" --- # The mathematician of to-day admits that he can neither… ![“The mathematician of to-day admits that he can neither square the circle, duplicate the cube or trisect the angle. May not our mechanicians, in like manner, be ultimately forced to admit that aerial flight is one of that great class of problems with which men can never cope... I do not claim that…” quote by Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/simon-newcomb-16581_aerial_the-mathematician-of-to-day-admits-that_2519978.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/simon-newcomb-16581_aerial_the-mathematician-of-to-day-admits-that_2519978.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/simon-newcomb-16581_aerial_the-mathematician-of-to-day-admits-that_2519978.jpg) > “The mathematician of to-day admits that he can neither square the circle, duplicate the cube or trisect the angle. May not our mechanicians, in like manner, be ultimately forced to admit that aerial flight is one of that great class of problems with which men can never cope... I do not claim that this is a necessary conclusion from any past experience. But I do think that success must await progress of a different kind from that of invention.” [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that some problems may be inherently unsolvable by current methods, suggesting future breakthroughs will require new approaches beyond invention. **In simple terms:** Some problems seem unsolvable now, but new ways may solve them later. Key Takeaway Embrace new paradigms when old methods fail. Themes limitations innovation scientific progress Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - research planning - technology development - education reform - policy making Key Concepts unsolvable problems paradigm shift future breakthroughs Questions to Reflect On - What new approaches could tackle today’s “unsolvable” challenges? - How do we balance skepticism with optimism? A Different Perspective Assuming impossibility can stifle effort; not all problems are truly unsolvable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Admit Aerial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/admit-aerial-1240716/) [Aerial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aerial/) [Aerial Flight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aerial-flight-1240715/) [Airplane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/airplane/) [Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angle/) [Circles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circles/) [Claims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claims/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Conclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion/) [Cubes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cubes/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Different kinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-kinds/) [Duplicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duplicate/) [Flight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flight/) [Invention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invention/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Mathematician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematician/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Past experiences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-experiences/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Squares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/squares/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which men will never have to cope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-men-will/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which man will never be able to cope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-man-will/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which man will never be able to cope. . . . The example of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-man-will-2/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [There are two critical points in every aerial flight-its beginning and its end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/there-are-two-critical-points-in-every-aerial-flight-its-beginning/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Bright, white coming alive jumping off of the aerial All the time it's a changing, like now...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bush/bright-white-coming-alive-jumping-off-of-the-aerial-all-the-time-it-s/) [Kate Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bush/) > [U.S. Government propaganda tries to give the impression that aerial bombardment achieves near-surgical accuracy, so that military targets can be destroyed with minimal effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/u-s-government-propaganda-tries-to-give-the-impression-that-aerial/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Archaeologists gave the military the idea to use aerial photographs for spying and field survey. We are fortunate that the spatial and spectral resolutions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/archaeologists-gave-the-military-the-idea-to-use-aerial-photographs/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [Aerial perspective has nothing to do with line, but concerns tones and colours, by the delicate manipulation of which an artist can suggest infinite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-j-phillips/aerial-perspective-has-nothing-to-do-with-line-but-concerns-tones-and/) [Walter J. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-j-phillips/) > [Archaeologists have used aerial photographs to map archaeological sites since the 1920s, while the use of infrared photography started in the 1960s, and satellite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/archaeologists-have-used-aerial-photographs-to-map-archaeological/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [I like flashy techniques like jumping, aerial techniques. But I also like submissions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yair-rodriguez/i-like-flashy-techniques-like-jumping-aerial-techniques-but-i-also/) [Yair Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yair-rodriguez/) > [Our nano-quadrotor robots are made to be as lightweight as possible: less than a fifth of a pound and palm-sized. They can do an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-kumar/our-nano-quadrotor-robots-are-made-to-be-as-lightweight-as-possible/) [Vijay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-kumar/) > [The idea of aerial military surveillance dates back to the Civil War, when both the Union and the Confederacy used hot-air balloons to spy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hastings/the-idea-of-aerial-military-surveillance-dates-back-to-the-civil-war/) [Michael Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hastings/) > [I give my grandfather, Dr Harold Young, a forestry Professor at the University of Maine, full credit for my career path. He pioneered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/i-give-my-grandfather-dr-harold-young-a-forestry-professor-at-the/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [Drones ply the liminal space between the physical and the digital - pilots fly them, but aren't in them. They are versatile and fascinating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/drones-ply-the-liminal-space-between-the-physical-and-the-digital/) [John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/) > [“In the olden days it was easy to make a television work.You plugged an aerial cable into the back, then bashed the top with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-clarkson/in-the-olden-days-it-was-easy-to-make-a-television-work-you-plugged/) [Jeremy Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-clarkson/) ## More by Simon Newcomb > [If my impressions are correct, our educational planing mill cuts down all the knots of genius, and reduces the best of the men who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/if-my-impressions-are-correct-our-educational-planing-mill-cuts-down/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Though born in Nova Scotia, I am of almost pure New England descent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/though-born-in-nova-scotia-i-am-of-almost-pure-new-england-descent/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which men will never have to cope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-men-will/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [One hardly knows where, in the history of science, to look for an important movement that had its effective start in so pure and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/one-hardly-knows-where-in-the-history-of-science-to-look-for-an/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Until I was four years old I lived in the house of my paternal grandfather, about two miles from the pretty little village of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/until-i-was-four-years-old-i-lived-in-the-house-of-my-paternal/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [One of the most beautiful hypotheses ever propounded in physics is ... the Dynamical Theory of Gases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/one-of-the-most-beautiful-hypotheses-ever-propounded-in-physics-is/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Construction of an aerial vehicle which can carry even a single man . . . requires the discovery of some new metal or force.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/construction-of-an-aerial-vehicle-which-can-carry-even-a-single-man/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [James Edward Oliver might have been one of the great mathematicians of his time had he not been absolutely wanting in the power of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/james-edward-oliver-might-have-been-one-of-the-great-mathematicians/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [A suggestion had been made to me looking toward a professorship in some Western college, but after due consideration, I declined to consider the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/a-suggestion-had-been-made-to-me-looking-toward-a-professorship-in/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [My father followed, during most of his life, the precarious occupation of a country school teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/my-father-followed-during-most-of-his-life-the-precarious-occupation/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [In 1858 I received the degree of D. S. from the Lawrence Scientific School, and thereafter remained on the rolls of the university as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/in-1858-i-received-the-degree-of-d-s-from-the-lawrence-scientific/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [The result was that, if it happened to clear off after a cloudy evening, I frequently arose from my bed at any hour of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/the-result-was-that-if-it-happened-to-clear-off-after-a-cloudy/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [In 1860 a total eclipse of the sun was visible in British America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/in-1860-a-total-eclipse-of-the-sun-was-visible-in-british-america/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [What we now call school training, the pursuit of fixed studies at stated hours under the constant guidance of a teacher, I could scarcely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/what-we-now-call-school-training-the-pursuit-of-fixed-studies-at/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [As the existence of a corps of professors of mathematics is peculiar to our navy, as well as an apparent, perhaps a real, anomaly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/as-the-existence-of-a-corps-of-professors-of-mathematics-is-peculiar/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) [Explore all 39 Simon Newcomb quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) ## More Aerial quotes > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which men will never have to cope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-men-will/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [I like flashy techniques like jumping, aerial techniques. But I also like submissions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yair-rodriguez/i-like-flashy-techniques-like-jumping-aerial-techniques-but-i-also/) [Yair Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yair-rodriguez/) > [Our nano-quadrotor robots are made to be as lightweight as possible: less than a fifth of a pound and palm-sized. They can do an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-kumar/our-nano-quadrotor-robots-are-made-to-be-as-lightweight-as-possible/) [Vijay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-kumar/) > [Bright, white coming alive jumping off of the aerial All the time it's a changing, like now...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bush/bright-white-coming-alive-jumping-off-of-the-aerial-all-the-time-it-s/) [Kate Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bush/) > [Drones ply the liminal space between the physical and the digital - pilots fly them, but aren't in them. They are versatile and fascinating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/drones-ply-the-liminal-space-between-the-physical-and-the-digital/) [John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/) > [I give my grandfather, Dr Harold Young, a forestry Professor at the University of Maine, full credit for my career path. He pioneered the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/i-give-my-grandfather-dr-harold-young-a-forestry-professor-at-the/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [The idea of aerial military surveillance dates back to the Civil War, when both the Union and the Confederacy used hot-air balloons to spy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hastings/the-idea-of-aerial-military-surveillance-dates-back-to-the-civil-war/) [Michael Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hastings/) > [“In the olden days it was easy to make a television work.You plugged an aerial cable into the back, then bashed the top with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-clarkson/in-the-olden-days-it-was-easy-to-make-a-television-work-you-plugged/) [Jeremy Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-clarkson/) > [Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which man will never be able to cope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-newcomb/aerial-flight-is-one-of-that-class-of-problems-with-which-man-will/) [Simon Newcomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-newcomb/) > [Archaeologists have used aerial photographs to map archaeological sites since the 1920s, while the use of infrared photography started in the 1960s, and satellite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/archaeologists-have-used-aerial-photographs-to-map-archaeological/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [Aerial perspective has nothing to do with line, but concerns tones and colours, by the delicate manipulation of which an artist can suggest infinite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-j-phillips/aerial-perspective-has-nothing-to-do-with-line-but-concerns-tones-and/) [Walter J. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-j-phillips/) > [Archaeologists gave the military the idea to use aerial photographs for spying and field survey. We are fortunate that the spatial and spectral resolutions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/archaeologists-gave-the-military-the-idea-to-use-aerial-photographs/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [U.S. Government propaganda tries to give the impression that aerial bombardment achieves near-surgical accuracy, so that military targets can be destroyed with minimal effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/u-s-government-propaganda-tries-to-give-the-impression-that-aerial/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Poetry has roots, and sometimes they are aerial. Sometimes they are buried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-geok-lin-lim/poetry-has-roots-and-sometimes-they-are-aerial-sometimes-they-are/) [Shirley Geok-lin Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-geok-lin-lim/) > [Now in the 1980s, I happened to notice that if you look at an aerial photograph of an African village, you see fractals. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-eglash/now-in-the-1980s-i-happened-to-notice-that-if-you-look-at-an-aerial/) [Ron Eglash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-eglash/) [Browse all 26 Aerial quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aerial/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The mathematician of to-day admits that he can neither square the circle, duplicate the cube or trisect the angle. May not our mechanicians, in like manner, be ultimately forced to admit that aerial flight is one of that great class of problems with which men can never cope... I do not claim that this is a necessary conclusion from any past experience. 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