Kevin Buzzard is a professor in Imperial College London working in number theory and formal proof verification. In this interview, Kevin shares his views on the role of computers in doing math, tells about his experience of upbringing 3 kids as a researcher and raises questions about the way we approach math education. Lots of glorious laughter and unforgettable facial expressions are included!
Kevin's homepage: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/people/k.buzzard
Channel podcast: https://anchor.fm/math-life-balance
Chapters:
0:00 teaser
0:48 Kevin’s t-shirt
3:06 imagination in math
5:36 computers vs humans
10:43 computers and infinity
12:35 math as a zen puzzle
15:19 role of fashion in math
20:06 mathematicians detecting mistakes
24:41 imperfections in our math
29:14 when the dust settles
31:56 not caring what people think
36:01 how to entertain kids in the subway
40:26 babies as the way to understand humanity
42:52 doing math when you have 3 kids
46:09 writing papers with non-mathematicians
48:54 why kids are forced to memorize math?
53:29 doing exams vs learning math
57:16 unusual advice for students
59:15 the answer to the ultimate question