The
Numerology Letdown
Numerology
has long been a disappointment to mathematicians. The failed romance of numerology goes back to
Pythagoras. He proclaimed that number rules the universe; and in a sense we are
all Pythagoreans now. (But reformed Pythagoreans; the square root of two and
all that.)
You would think that if
number rules the universe, then the numbers themselves should be relevant to
everyday life; but no. Yes, harmonious musical chords are based on integer
ratios; and yes, the sum of the squares of the sides of a right triangle
equals the square of the diagonal; these Pythagorean insights are valid; but “five equals marriage” is not. The
applications of mathematics deal with the numbers as a class, not as
individuals.
Numbers are like
Hollywood stars; they have properties and relationships, but no personalities.
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