Extras

Blogs

What’s new, by Terence Tao

Gowers’s Weblog, by Timothy Gowers

Freedom Math Dance, by Antoine Chambert-Loir

Mathematics without Apologies, by Michael Harris

Xena, by Kevin Buzzard

David Mumford’s blog

Polymath

Essays

We shall know: Hilbert’s apology · Translation and comment of Hilbert’s radio address from his retirement speech.

A mathematician’s apology · An annotated version of the famous essay by G. H. Hardy.

The mathematician, by John von Neumann.

Cargo Cult Science · Caltech’s 1974 commencement address by Richard Feynman.

On proof and progress in mathematics, by William Thurston.

What is good mathematics?, by Terence Tao.

A Mathematician’s Lament · An essay on the teaching of mathematics in schools, by Paul Lockhart.

Birds and frogs, by Freeman Dyson.

The two cultures of mathematics, by Timothy Gowers.

Mathematics for Human Flourishing · The retiring address by former president of the Mathematical Association of America Francis Su.

AI, mathematics and the coming singularity

Starting from mid-2026, advances in the field of AI have profoundly shaken the mathematical community and (at the very least) changed forever the practice of mathematical research. I do not think that this should be, at this moment, anybody’s primary concern: we seem to be at a crucial juncture of humanity’s history, and the upcoming changes to society as a whole will impact everybody, mathematicians included, much more than whatever change AI might force upon our profession. Nevertheless we mathematicians care deeply about mathematics and the past months have brought a resurgence of blogging activity and many philosophical reflections on the nature of mathematics as an endeavour, both for individual mathematicians and for mankind.

Crowdsourcing a list of general resources on the purpose, value, and nature of mathematics

Crowdsourcing a list of general resources on AI and mathematics

Mathematical methods and human thought in the age of AI, by Tanya Klowden and Terence Tao. (2026-03-27)

The fall of the theorem economy · Some reflections on the impact of LLMs on mathematical research, by David Bessis. (2026-04-21)

Leiden Declaration on Artificial Intelligence and Mathematics · (2026-06-02)

The end of the age of heroes, by Noah Smith. (2026-08-04)

A Severe Misalignment of AI in Mathematics, a declaration signed by 28 Field medalists. (2026-09-11)

A beginning for mathematics, by Daniel Litt. (2026-09-13)

Why I didn’t sign the Fields medallists’ letter, by Timothy Gowers. (2026-09-17)

Why Do We Need Human Mathematicians Anymore?, by Po-Shen Loh. (2026-09-19)

To grieve, or not to grieve?, by Kevin Buzzard. (2026-10-01)

The Future of Mathematics, by Jeremy Avigad. (2026-10-05)