My personal & overly condensed view of mathematics and physics in the 20th century would be summarized like this.
Mathematics began as a stool on the three legs of Algebra, Calculus, and Geometry where the last appeared to many to be the weakest leg. It turned out otherwise.
Mathematics began as a stool on the three legs of Algebra, Calculus, and Geometry where the last appeared to many to be the weakest leg. It turned out otherwise.
Repeatedly we find that any important problem from math or physics which we consider to be outside geometry/topology has a hidden geometrical nature to it. And there are only so many times you fall for that before you start to see geometry absolutely everywhere.
As for Weinberg, he is one of three people I can make the case for as our “Greatest Living Physicist”. I’ve met him. But he still has big bets which are undecided (e.g. asymptotic safety). Witten is somehow even smarter but less accomplished in standard predictive theory. But...
I would say the one who awes me most is...CN Yang. I don’t understand why I never hear his name as candidate. He has at least 3 of the greatest achievements: chirality for the weak force (w/ Lee), non-Abelian maxwell theory (w/ Mills), and the bundle revolution (w/ Simons/Wu).
And this doesn’t even count things like the Yang-Baxter equation which would be the peak of anyone else’s career.
Imagine. An Asian man named Yang, who gets repeatedly forgotten by media but is totally unique and inspires fanaticism in his followers. #YangMediaBlackout #YangGang
Imagine. An Asian man named Yang, who gets repeatedly forgotten by media but is totally unique and inspires fanaticism in his followers. #YangMediaBlackout #YangGang
