There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did Alice think in so very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to itself “Oh dear. Oh dear! I shall be too late!” (when she thought it over afterwards, it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the time it all seemed quite natural); but, when the Rabbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to take out of it, and, burning with curiosity, she ran across the field after it, and was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge.
I must lament that in the modern world there remain few individuals, who not only wield the wit and ingenuity to understand abstract mathematics, but also the eloquence to present them in an elegant manner.
Lewis Carroll, whose real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson was an English author renowned for his works Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass.
But perhaps, unbeknownst to most of us, his works were more than mere figments of his imagination. If we are able to read between the lines, we will soon unearth a handful of mathematical puzzles weaved into the stories.
I think there’s a bit of Lewis Carroll in me. I write well and am quick witted. But above all, I see mathematics for what it is. A form of intellectual pursuit enjoyed by some, but not all.
We must understand that although ‘maths is everywhere’, it does not explain all that in front of our eyes.
Understanding oblique collisions of snooker balls does not make one a good snooker player.
Mastering optimisation in constrained and unconstrained problems at the expense of health and happiness is truly the most epic failure in optimising one’s own life. I regret that I have seen far too many gullible students fall prey to the cult of mathematical romanticism.
Time is running out. Anyway let me go down the rabbit hole and see what’s in store in the whimsical Wonderland.
🦩🦔🍄
