Taking Sides: Maths V. Science

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OH NO moan the BBQ crowd but the pressing question must be raised One More Time. DG is firmly on the side of science but I say MATHS is better. First of all it came before science. Second of all, it has vectors. Third of all, if we had no maths I couldn't even be doing a numerical list. FOURTH of all when you are DEAD GOOD at it it becomes a LANGUAGE and you can speak entirely in 458375897-893294=SQUARE ROOT hahahahahaha! I'm so funny. And in science you get to drop a bit of metal into some water and watch it fizz. To be honest, there are more thrills to be found in ALKA SELTZER which is medicine and not science.

So, Maths v. Science. Choose yr allegiance!

― Sarah, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

but isn't maths, like, actually a science itself?

xoxo

― |\|0|2/|\4|\| |=4'/, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Science = bastardised and UNCLEAN form of MATHS. Maths can also claim CHAOS theory which is a damn good laugh, if you ask me.

― Sarah, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

If you do a degree in maths you get a BA therefore maths is proven by science to be not science.

I should warn you that this debate ended up as a fight between things that begin with M vs. things that begin with S.

― Emma, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Science+Maths+Technology=Calculator

― jel, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maths is not a science, tho not for reasons Emma stated (as I have degree in Physics and it is also a BA). I think maths is best, despite my idiotic degree choice, because PROOF means something in maths and not in science. Yes, that's right: PROOF BY SCIENCE is meaningless. HA! HAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHA! Ahem.

― Richard Tunnicliffe, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

yeah, but science can kill you and maths can't. i think it'd be dangerous to piss science off by not giving it the respect it deserves.

― marianna, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

MATHEMATICS = QUEEN & SERVANT OF SCIENCE

― the pinefox, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Science & Maths = S&M: who bottoms, who tops? (Of course in logic of S&M logic, bottom = actually top...)

― mark s, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

At the end of term in Science, we did glass blowing in the bunsen burners and made Christmas decorations. At the end of term in Maths we played battleships on the blackboard. Science wins hands down.

― Madchen, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

hujmanities and social sciences.

― Geoff, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was always thrown out of science lessons, or if allowed to sit in the class, I was banned from doing experiments. So science to me essentially means standing facing the stares or sitting in a room of science teachers who weren't teaching, watching them chew on sandwiches and read the paper in their Man from C&A jumpers... Maths therefore is the winner as I never got banned from doing sums.

― Martin, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Stares = stairs... I wasn't paranoid at an early age.

― Martin, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

*shuffles from under dusty English lit degrees and texts* Eh? What's that you say? MATHS? That means nothing to me...

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maths wins. Chemistry is the most boring subject in the world and Physics teachers are usually stupid or mad. Biology I have no idea about except the obvious, hur hur.

― Ally C, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Math, singular or plural, did NOT come before science, dear Starry. Math developed from abstract reasoning about empirical observation, unless you're Kant or something, and empirical observation and thinking about it constitutes science. Math is science's BITCH don't you know, either that or its sugar daddy.

― Benjamin, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SCIENCILLAZ

― DG, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

This is exactly like asking "Taking Sides: Stalin v. Mussolini". I mean, honestly people.

― Ally, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Obviously science is better than maths because in maths, you don't get to burn the end of your biro with a Bunsen burner, nor do you get to feel sick because the boy in front of you thought it would very very funny to switch on the gas taps when the teacher had left the room. In maths you don't get to wear those funky safety glasses either. In maths, you just get shouted at by a woman who smells of cigarettes because you scribbled on the textbook of the boy sitting next to you even though HE STARTED IT.

― jamesmichaelward, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Science. It's more like humanities, you've got words instead of all those stupid dull numbers, and you actually get to do things. Math is all ideas in essence, but sciences are based off of actual physical happenings. I was strictly a history student, but chemistry is among the best courses I've ever taken. It's got experiments and you can get into some interesting philosophy from it. I like the relevance of biology and the scale of geology.

― Lyra, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

maths = kewl cuz either you can do it or you can't. you don't have to WORK, you just look and do... until one day (with me it was lebesgue integration), you just look and CAN'T do, and that's when you stop, and switch to philosophy... science you have to LEARN stuff, n'stuff

― mark s, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

no, math is learning for me. i know some people who give up and some people who have a facility for it, but i've always spent time being taught or figuring it out. it doesn't just click, but it's not impossible.

― Lyra, Tuesday, 21 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'd have to say science, 'cause it's more fun to tinker and play with things than it is with numbers. And I only like math when it's useful (stuff like accounting or statistics) -- the theoretical stuff is for the birds. That said, I somehow managed to get a B+ in College Calculus.

― Tadeusz Suchodolski, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Me and Mark Sinker are the same person shock. Lesbegue Integration was the beginning of the end for me as well. At which point I realised if I told my Maths tutors I was doing loads of Philosophy and my Philosophy tutors I was doing loads of Maths I could end up doing loads o'drinking.

Sarah - Maths may become a very basic language but - importantly - in the language of maths it is only possible to talk about maths. It is therefore a rubbish language at the best of times.

I'm with Madchen on the glass blowing in science.

― Pete, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

science lets you blow things up or brew drugs, maths, hmmm, let's see, well, you can draw graphs.

Maths is shit, I always hated it and there's a couple of mathematicians that I wouldn't mind executing either (no-one on here though).

― cabbage, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"could end up doing loads o'drinking" = not quite same person after all hurrah

― mark s, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Physics is to math, what sex is to Masterbation" -Feynman

and he also added "Physics is like sex, sure it has practical results but thats not why we do it."

― zacko, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

All you 'oh maths is useless' people are talking rubbish. Unless you are a luny like Hartry Field you cannot DO science without math.

― Josh, Wednesday, 22 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

physics is to maths, what jaded old swinging couples fucking is to young lovers kissing for the first time

― maryann, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maryann, will you marry me?

― Josh, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

We shall be three together forever young, discussing cosines and galois

― mark s, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Three? No way. Go discuss Galois with Pete.

― Josh, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

seven months pass...

Maths is based in deductive reasoning-science is based in inductive reasoning. That means Maths is truth-science is not! Simple as that! Mathematical theorems have all been proved true, but scientific theorems and ideas haven't! Maths is best!!

― Lesley Gaston, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maths = sliderules
Science = blowing shit up

SCIENCE WINS!

― DG, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Nope. Blowing things up = TECHNOLOGY.

― RickyT, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

TECHNOLOGY = SCIENCE'S BITCH

― DG, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

mark + pete - you should have persisted with lebesgue integration! admittedly revising it was horrible and i have forgotten all the horrible details of pi-systems and whatever now, but it finally makes integration work instead of fall over every time it hits a tiny obstacle. the day i saw the dominated convergence theorem (w/ accompanying nick broomfield anecdote from lecturer) = the day i realised that the definitions in lebesgue integration were EXACTLY THE RIGHT THING.

― toby, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SCIENCE = MATHS'S BITCH

― RickyT, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

b-b-b-but i HATE nick broomfield?!

haha he will come a croppah w.his tupac doc tho surely...

― mark s, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

MATHS = GÖDEL'S BITCH.
=> GÖDEL = GÖD

This is why he was frightened of being poisoned.
(SOCRATES = JESUS btw)

― Sam, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

actually it was not much of an anecdote (and indeed nick broomfield = tosser), more of a "ever since i saw nick broomfield's fetishes documentary i've been unable to think about the dominated convergence theorem without images of leather clad dominatrixes putting cigarettes out in men's mouths. and you won't be able to either now", or words to that effect.

i rather suspect it was the delivery that made it funny.

― toby, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

err why does that make godel god?!

― toby, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SCIENCE = MATHS'S BITCH

I initially read this as "SCIENCE = MATHS, BITCH".

― Dan Perry, Thursday, 28 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

eleven months pass...

maths suXoR, science roXoR, u r x where x is all gay

(i can't believe i didn't make this inciteful comment back then)

― Alan (Alan), Thursday, 27 March 2003 14:55 (twenty-three years ago)

And then they all lebesgue up?

― Archel (Archel), Thursday, 27 March 2003 15:03 (twenty-three years ago)

what a pretty thread.

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Thursday, 27 March 2003 15:16 (twenty-three years ago)

one year passes...

BEST THREAD EVER.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Thursday, 25 November 2004 10:17 (twenty-one years ago)

i had a big rant just the other day about how rubbish it is that no-one tells you the dominated convergence theorem in the first term of a maths degree.

i rather suspect that that isn't the part of the thread that matt's referring too, though.

― toby (tsg20), Thursday, 25 November 2004 10:56 (twenty-one years ago)

That's the best bit of the thread! The fact that the general discourse extends to "science = blowing things up, maths = SCIENCE'S BITCH" and then you pop up talking about actual maths that no one understands.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Thursday, 25 November 2004 10:59 (twenty-one years ago)

I feel about maths exactly the way Sinkah and Pete do, except I quit before getting to my limits, so never got as far as Lesbegue Integration, nor do I even know what it is (let alone the dominated convergence theorem, of course). The maths we had to do on the computer science degree I did came insanely easy to me (to the point where the lecturers got me to act as an extra tutor to my fellow students).

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Thursday, 25 November 2004 13:32 (twenty-one years ago)

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