logoalt Hacker News

anitil • today at 3:04 AM • 1 reply • view on HN

That may be true, but mathematicians still need to eat, and for the they'll need jobs. 'Will there be more or less demand for mathematicians in the future?' and 'What will the work entail?' I think are valid concerns


Replies

Barrin92 • today at 3:24 AM

the vast majority of people who pursued a maths degree, including myself here, didn't expect to compete with Terrence Tao or solve outstanding research problems.

We studied maths because it is interesting, because it teaches you how to think, you often pair it up with something that's more employable like economics or software development, or you go for a teaching career. Unless you're one of the few people who are heavily invested in cutting edge research I don't even see how new research tools change the profession.

An undergraduate maths education isn't going to change because you have people with computers churn out 400 page proofs. It's like being worried about 30 move Stockfish opening theory if you're a club level chess player.

➕ show 1 reply