To Infinity and Beyond (Movie review)

Summary:

During the summer of 1900, the International Congress of Mathematics was held at Sorbonne, Paris. According to Marcus du Sautoy, it is the greatest congresses of all times because of the lecture given by a young German mathematician David Hilbert. Hilbert believed that there were 23 problems that mathematicians need to fissure. These problem defines the modern age of mathematics. Hilbert’s list of problem started at the Germany.

In Halle, East Germany, a great mathematician named Georg Cantor spent his adulthood. He is the first person who understand the meaning of infinity. Cantor showed that Infinity is understandable. According to him, infinity is not only one but there are lots of infinities. Further explanation about Infinity can be found in “Story of Math-To Infinity and beyond”. Cantor suffered from manic depression then died in 1884.

` In town Square, a statue was built to honor George Handel-Halle’s famous son. Halle was a part of communist for 50 years in East Germany.

Another mathematician a famous one became Cantor’s contemporary. He came all the way from France. He argued that Cantor’s Infinity was pathological.

In a conversation between Bertrand Russell and a politician, it showed there that he chosen Henri Poincare, a cousin of Raymond Poincare over Napoleon Balsac. Henri Poincare was a mathematician who had spent his life in Paris. Paris became a center of mathematics during 19^th century and their leading light was Poincare. He was almost good for everything like algebra, geometry and analysis. His work lead to all kinds of application. His hard work leads to success.

His next destination is to the City of Kaliningrad. This was where you can found the 7 bridges. The Question that puzzled them was how to cross the bridge at once. But then the person who eventually solved it was a great mathematician named Leonhard Euler who proved that crossing the bridge at once was not possible.

Far from Kaliningrad, there was a nearest Russian City, St. Petersburg. A Russian mathematician named Grisha Perelman solved the problems regarding Topology. His proof quit difficult to understand even for mathematician. He solved such problem by associating it to an area of mathematics. He received prizes and professorship from illustrious Universities. But instead of accepting it he declined. Suddenly he give up mathematics.

Another man who destroyed Hilbert’s belief was an Austrian mathematician named Kurt Godel. He lived in Vienna. He studied mathematics at Vienne University. He wanted to solve Hilbert’s second problem and tried to found out logical foundation of mathematics. But he failed. He found exactly opposite in Hilbert’s wants. This was called Incompleteness Theorems. Out of this failure, he suffered series of breakdowns. Their country suffered from mathematics crisis.

A young American mathematician named Paul Cohen won mathematical competitions and prizes. At first he found out that it was hard to discover a failed mathematics. He read about Cantor’s problem so he decided to solve it. He discovered extraordinary mathematics that can possibly be an answer. He died in California in 2007. Though his already dead his approach inspires others.

All mentioned above was consistently men, but to break the record, there was a woman named Sofia Kovalevskey, a Russian mathematician. She became the first female professor in Stockholm in1889. She won mathematical prize. She was then seconded by Emmy Noether, an Algebraist. Then Julia Robinson, who was the first woman who elected as president. She was a high ability in mathematics and in fact she was the only girl in math class.After Robinson, here came Yuri Matiyasevichwas a lecturer and he explained his latest on Riemann Hypothesis. He captured the famous sequence of numbers in Fibonacci. He worked with Julia Robinson on several mathematical problems.

Another mathematician from Paris named Evariste Galois. He believed that mathematics was not only studies of number and shapes but also structures. He can tell whether an equation has a solution or not by just looking it. He stayed 4 months in jail while finding new mathematical language but he died on the following morning at the age of 22. His idea was picked by a Parisian mathematician, Andre Weil. Galois shown a new mathematical structures that can reveal secrets in equations. After Galois, Nicholas Bourbaki- a strange man appeared. He wrote several books regarding analysis, geometry and topology. Bourbaki’s baton handed down to French mathematicians. And there their famous member was Alexandre Grothendieck. He conducted famous seminars during 50s and 60s. He produced new powerful mathematical language to see structures.

Comments/Reactions:

Mathematics is about calculation, solving problems and equations and many more. This is what makes it different, interesting and fun (for the others). Mathematicians, on the other hand, change our world today. New ideas, approaches and findings emerged from a single problem (I guess).

The movie was quite interesting and most of all knowledgeable. I don’t know who are the mathematicians mentioned, since I don’t remember I encountered them during my High school years. But, most or all of them contributed a lot. As what I observed they focus on Hilbert’s unsolved problem and they tried to find significant answer that are acceptable. Though the problem was the same but they arrived on different answers. That’s what made them unique from each other. Some argued and some tried to search another new mathematical approach. They were just brainstorming now and then, I don’t know how they handle they’re social life. But they were all amazing. How do they’re brain works? Their childhood were full of sickness and they were not totally fortunate. Most of the people that shine were men but in this movie it showed up that there were also girl power. According to others men were smarter due to the appearance of their brain but it shows here that women were also smart on their unique ways.

Everyone has the ability or capable of being mathematicians. A simple beginning might help. But first, you need to appreciate the hidden beauty of math and search what lies beyond it. I think the series movie entitled Story of Math already help me in gaining appreciation and also change my perspective in Math. Mathematics for me is full mystery. I don’t know what are the new mathematical approach that someday might emerged.