Aicha Kaouach it really depends. In definite integrals you don't necessarily need it, but it matters if you have initial conditions and such. It starts to matter a lot more in things like boundary conditions and such.
@@siulapwa There is still a long way to go for Tao to get to the level of Socrates who once said, "I know that I know nothing." And Socrates was the greatest thinker of all time.
Maybe it is the case that having an ego just takes up too much space in our thoughts to be compatible with genius. Maybe whats holding a lot of people back from becoming geniuses is their belief that they are smart, and that they should been seen as smart.
Had an honor class with him 6 yrs ago when I was an undergrad at UCLA. That was the first higher division math course I took. Could tell he is a very nice person in real life, but to comprehend him during lecture is very very hard. He had a completely different flow compared to other professors. Whole lecture is like listening to him proofing a Lemma in his brain, it’s spontaneous and happens very fast. Taking notes is very challenging: wiring down too many details is risky since if you got lost from his thought process, the rest of the lecture is fucked; too little, you cannot recall them after class. I would say 90% of the students who took his class would think he is not as informative as other professors. But the 10% left could potentially progress very fast.
extremely smart people usually have the problem that not even people in the top 5% of intelligence will understand them unless they slow down to an uncomfortable speed for their fast brains. That's why, for most of us, a teacher in top 10% who understands what they're teaching is better than a top 0.01% super brilliant teacher
I always think of teaching abilities as a trait of character rather than a trait of intelligence. But when both fall into the same person it can be truly fascinating… just saying: Richard Feynman.
his mother kept him primary school to do English and P.E. Then he would go to high school to do maths and a couple of other subjects. For this exact reason
apparently he almost failed grad school because he wasted all his time playing civilization 2. Even the greatest mathematician of all time is a civ addict irl LOL
This really put it into perspective for me as I will be 20 in a few months and I'll be at the stage to just _apply_ for a PhD when I am 24! That's also not even to say if I will even get onto a PhD, never mind it being somewhere like Princeton. Insane
there's no such a thing as a prodigy... it's all about his mentality and people that he has met on his path. Polgar sisters are one of the best examples of the true nature of so called "talented kids".
@@koraptd6085 You can do definitely that but the problem is there is deferences in IQ and if one kid gets expert in one field like Judit polgars but if the kid is also gifted he could first get faster there be better and also be successful in multiple areas so yes there are gifted children
The stars really aligned for this guy lol He had an affinity for math early on, had access to mentors that could help develop his skills, and just went with it.
Yeah, most people don't realize it's the environment and exposure that nurtures and shapes you as a person and not the genetics alone. Genes work in probabilistic ways not deterministic ways.
I used to think that way. But now I see things differently. Some people are born taller, faster, and maybe some are born "smarter". But unlike in sports, in mathematics, science, literature, etc. you can always bring something new to the table, or be the lucky one who realizes something important. So just do what you like to do and don't compare yourself to others :)
Math is so vast you might not even know about math you would enjoy. I think most people learn to hate math because of what math they are taught and what they are taught math is. It also takes some time to enjoy math. Once you're proficient it's hard not to like it.
@@shuneughu4244 You dont have to :) But likely you are using some sort of math concepts and enjoying it from time to time you just dont know its math. In another life you could like math its all about experiences.
Surprising I like maths but maths absolutely hates! I have failed miserably in every math test I have ever done. Now as a business even addition and subtraction is hard and I make mistakes and come to realize when I have already conned myself of hard earned money!
I dont think you do to be honest, i checked the roster and you wasnt on the list there, you attended jerkyjunk town univershitty and it showed that you passed the ballistical textbook pumpuff modules
Algebra and topology are two big branches of mathematics. There is no such thing called Algebra topology but there is one field of mathematics called algebraic topology. Just FYI. There are many big branches in mathematics like algebra, geometry, analysis and so on. Sometime we can use technics in one branch to solve problems in another branch and this will lead to a new field of study in mathematics. Normal the technic will become an adjective and appears first in the name. Algebraic topology is the studies of topology in the context of algebra or with tools developed in algebra.
That's the initial thought I had. He looked like he was 12 when he was a professor at UCLA and now he looks like a college student when he's 44. Crazy.
The thing I love about Mr Terry is that he is honest and hardworking that can be understood by this interview. Still trying to know more about you by watching your clips.
Idjles Erle Really? I genuinely envy you! I think i can do a lot better in studies ( I'm called geek everywhere already), but I procrastinate, A LOT. like, full final exam studies on last day. I imagine what I could do if all the laziness went away.
8:57 Fun fact: That man on the right is Grigori Perelman a math genius who solved one of the world’s most challenging mathematical problems but turned down a prestigious medal and a $1 million prize that went with it. I heard a story about him and I could not help but wonder what this man was thinking and how he view things in this world
He became disillusioned when other mathematicians claimed that they had developed the proof. Mathematics which, for the most part, is pursued by humans who are dedicated to truth and possess integrity has become tainted by societal rot!
He doesn't feel naturally comfortable answering a lot of questions but I got a feeling like he's humble and he wants to give back even though he may really hate interviews.
5:06 I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. - maya angelou misattributed 'I don't remember much about, um, our conversation, except I remember (...) I really felt like I was being treated like an equal.'
I think you need to re-watch the video, he says it doesn't work like that. It's not that he doesn't want solve it but that mathematics is built on the works of other mathematicians and that the mathematical tools aren't there yet as far as any mathematician can see and that he'd be the first to go for it when the right tools shows up.
@Mr. H "He could be the one to invent the tools though" You can't always purposefully invent the tools, especially not for such a famous problem. If we knew how to do that, we'd also know how to solve it because in this case inventing the tools would be equivalent to finishing the reasoning. For complex problems like that tools might invented by pure chance when solving something completely unrelated. Then someone suddenly realize that this new thing can be applied to a part of another problem like this one, and solve a bit more of it or if everyone's lucky, the rest of it.
Love watching Terrence Tao's interviews. The answer most people seem to avoid is how much love they received from their community to succeed. Did teachers take time to teach him the concepts? Were the parent's attending teacher parent conferences? Did he have tutors? Was public school beneficial or did he go to private school? Did he teach his fellow students or just keep to himself? Does he have a photographic memory and if so much of the questions before are irrelevant now. Very important questions that a lot don't think of when looking over geniuses. Even the place he was raised can have a profound effect on how likely he is to succeed.
he's a brilliant teacher, really takes the time to explain the material well and is actually available for office hours. I sat in a class he taught once. (Never took a class with him though -- I did physics, not math, and he only taught grad courses.) Cool guy.
Victor P. He said algebraic topology, not abstract algebra. Pretty much any field incorporates abstract algebra in some way so it would be pretty dull to think that he struggles with it. Algebraic topology uses algebraic methods to solve problems in topology, for example constructing the fundamental group for a given topological space or breaking it down in smaller parts with CW-complexes. From my small experience with is that it is a really technical area and is for me pretty hard to grasp.
+TIMS3O Actually, Tao said "algebra *_and_* topology" are his weakest areas, not "algebraic topology". " *_Those_* have always been my weakest *_areas_* ." 7:40
The most awesome thing is how he has the comfort to call mathematics tricks, like he feels empowered by math rather than fearing it and I truly believe this is what is holding too many of us back. That a lot of people fear math. It's like swimming. If you can swim comfortably, it doesn't matter how deep or vast it is as long as it is calm of course. But if you can't swim, even the pool can be freaky and even dangerous.
Samuel Hauptmann van Dam Why would anyone be afraid of math? Is the underlying fear the fear of being wrong, or having an incomplete understanding of it? Then that's an academic problem. Unfortunately, too many people are discouraged in today's academic spaces.
I think there is a lot to it. Honestly, a lot of teachers that isn't math teachers, which is most teachers, just doesn't appreciate math and for those who do, I think math is like truth and doesn't really care if others believe it? Like, you could disagree but I am actually using it to get to the moon and you won't get their either without me no matter how much you disagree. I think a lot of it is in the lack of appreciation and how to perceive math - like you said, though you had the negative angle on it. I think a lot of people sees math as a barrier to in between themselves and what they want rather than a tool to increase the speed of how you are getting there. Like the mountain or the sea. A lot of people have said it before but the why is just as important as the how. Especially when you have to get comfortable with the journey.
4:45 the comments on Erdos correspond with the general picture of him i gathered from a wonderful biography of him "The Man Who Only Loved Numbers." He was known to have a huge knowledge of a range of mathematical subjects and part of his brilliance was as a collaborator. He could always find problems that were appropriate for the level of his interlocutor and productive for them to work out together as equals. A great team player.
Please don't make fun of him. I see a lot of people here making fun of his speech. As a stutterer myself, I can tell he has a stuttering problem yet he is trying his best not to stutter. It takes immense work to not stutter when you have a stutter. It is like being blind but showing people you are not. I know this from personal experience. Just the fact that he is speaking without any of you noticing his obvious stutter is so awesome.
@@edwardspencer9397 I do not know about that fact and I was not making fun of him. I really thought that way. I thought It should be the same way when our handwriting is bad because our brain goes faster. Sorry if what I said sounds offensive. But I am his huge fan! :)
I found this very interesting. He breaks down so many walls to the "magic" behind high level mathematics. It's refreshing to hear him concede that some problems are just beyond our current tool set no matter how "strong" you are. That's quite insightful and gives me pause because I now realize the depths of his genius (and others like him) is due to a strong work ethic. I strive to be so diligent.
You cannot be proud of your predispositions! Your talent is inherent in you genetics! Why did he not choose music or sports? People like this give you pause to not blame yourself for not being extraordinary, most of it is not in your hands! Effort only counts while you are competing in the same IQ range!
Calvin Tai that's not really extraordinary. I can assure you there are many people,including myself, who remember some stuff from similar age like his, and obviously it doesn't mean you are special or a genius in any way.
I don't know why but I've been feeling hopeless lately. This video made me feel much better, and I'm not particularly a math fan. I guess I liked seeing someone do what he loves and just exhale his passion. It was refreshing.
I hope Terence can see this comment, I am a grade 7 and learning calculus, but my teachers ignored my potential, I know calculus is easy for Terence but I want to know what's my true potential, I started at physics and created some theories, and realize I need some maths to create one so I tried calculus and it's easy.
One of my Professors in Germany worked for quite some time with Terence Tao together. Such an honor to recieve lectures from such a man! I am so happy!
I find him fascinating in the same way you find a great athlete fascinating. It's like, someone who has this brilliance and natural ability at what they do, even though I don't understand how they do it.
The way he describes he couldn't understand the why of mathematics at younger age is very relatable, disregarding the mathematics I think we all experience new dimensions of clarity the older we get.
- What's your weakness?
- I forget +c while integrating.
Well said.
u dont need it lol
Aicha Kaouach Oh you do
Aicha Kaouach it really depends. In definite integrals you don't necessarily need it, but it matters if you have initial conditions and such. It starts to matter a lot more in things like boundary conditions and such.
Hahaha
A genius, yet so modest. Not a shred of arrogance in him. What a legend.
@Arid Sohan I wish he taught me mathematics I would have solved pi.
Music and maths are interchangeable, one or the other works fine.
The more you know the more you know what you don't know
its because when you know youre the best you dont need to act like you are the best ie being arrogant
@@siulapwa There is still a long way to go for Tao to get to the level of Socrates who once said, "I know that I know nothing."
And Socrates was the greatest thinker of all time.
Maybe it is the case that having an ego just takes up too much space in our thoughts to be compatible with genius. Maybe whats holding a lot of people back from becoming geniuses is their belief that they are smart, and that they should been seen as smart.
One of the most intelligent person in the world but how humble is he. I really like him
Yeah , I really liked how earnestly he consider the questions.
they usually are....bowed down by knowledge
Yes intelligent people are very humble. Thats why tiktokers are egoistic and not humble at all
If you're really capable then you don't have to sell yourself to others, you let your work speak for itself
ONE OF THE MOST YES, BUT THERE ARE BETTER ONES. FEYNMAN AND JOHN NEUMAN FOR EXAMPLE. TAO DOESN'T WOW! THESE ONES I CITED DO.
Had an honor class with him 6 yrs ago when I was an undergrad at UCLA. That was the first higher division math course I took. Could tell he is a very nice person in real life, but to comprehend him during lecture is very very hard. He had a completely different flow compared to other professors. Whole lecture is like listening to him proofing a Lemma in his brain, it’s spontaneous and happens very fast. Taking notes is very challenging: wiring down too many details is risky since if you got lost from his thought process, the rest of the lecture is fucked; too little, you cannot recall them after class. I would say 90% of the students who took his class would think he is not as informative as other professors. But the 10% left could potentially progress very fast.
extremely smart people usually have the problem that not even people in the top 5% of intelligence will understand them unless they slow down to an uncomfortable speed for their fast brains. That's why, for most of us, a teacher in top 10% who understands what they're teaching is better than a top 0.01% super brilliant teacher
Highly intelligent people struggle to breakdown concept's
The curse of knowledge
@@omphiledirero5622 they struggle to help others understand concepts in a way as deep as them
I always think of teaching abilities as a trait of character rather than a trait of intelligence. But when both fall into the same person it can be truly fascinating… just saying: Richard Feynman.
I have to say I smiled when he said he hung around kids his age and partied at grad school, nice to see he didn’t let himself get TOTALLY absorbed
his mother kept him primary school to do English and P.E. Then he would go to high school to do maths and a couple of other subjects. For this exact reason
apparently he almost failed grad school because he wasted all his time playing civilization 2.
Even the greatest mathematician of all time is a civ addict irl LOL
@@akanta5746 OMG I GOOGLED AND IT'S TRUE XD
@@akanta5746 jfl
@@akanta5746 well he's not the greatest mathematician of all time,
Definitely a genius and a cool guy though
Did anyone else's jaw drop at the fact he had a PHD in Mathematics...AT 20!! From Princeton! And was teaching by 24. What a brilliant man.
ramanujan didnt had university education
nEW JERSEY IS really boring. I wonder how he survived Princeton.
Gold medal at 12 at IMO is more impressive
@@uduehdjztyfjrdjciv2160 yeah but he is someone who geniuses study.
This really put it into perspective for me as I will be 20 in a few months and I'll be at the stage to just _apply_ for a PhD when I am 24! That's also not even to say if I will even get onto a PhD, never mind it being somewhere like Princeton. Insane
I used my calculator in my math test today to find 7+11
LOL, STOP SHOWING OFF!!
7+11=18 I don't need to use a calculator for that
@@saskiafabrik3751 👌
@Richard Feynman algebra is easy for me lol
@@nabil731 My brain need a little of your brain.
We need more of Terry Tao on Numberphile, I would listen to him for hours.
Yeah let’s do that!
Its so nice when a prophesied genius fulfils their potential.
there's no such a thing as a prodigy... it's all about his mentality and people that he has met on his path.
Polgar sisters are one of the best examples of the true nature of so called "talented kids".
@@koraptd6085 nothing is pure nature nor pure nurture. It is always a mix of both, and this applies to many aspects of our existence.
@@koraptd6085
Tell that to William Sidis.
@@koraptd6085 You can do definitely that but the problem is there is deferences in IQ and if one kid gets expert in one field like Judit polgars but if the kid is also gifted he could first get faster there be better and also be successful in multiple areas so yes there are gifted children
@@koraptd6085 keep coping
PhD in maths at 20. I'm here struggling with highschool math.
This is actually a point where i stoped watching. There are prodigys and suckers. And i am not a prodigy.
But why?My dream is to do PhD in maths.What should I do?can you suggest me something?
x Mathematician. Study more lol
@@jeffreywong7244 right thanks brother.
x Mathematician. Np
His CPU is faster than his amplifier. He is getting bottlenecked.
Vu Anh Minh Le he needs ssd and lots of caching
This comment is fantastic.
He’s cpu may not be that different, it’s the operating system that...
@@johng7602 ik its a joke but it sounds racist. Maybe thats wad intel peeps think of amd peeps
so right lol
The stars really aligned for this guy lol
He had an affinity for math early on, had access to mentors that could help develop his skills, and just went with it.
His father was a surgeon and his mother was a maths university professor. They're both from Hong Kong.
Yeah, most people don't realize it's the environment and exposure that nurtures and shapes you as a person and not the genetics alone. Genes work in probabilistic ways not deterministic ways.
Terence Tao .The man who inspired me to give up mathematics
LOL!
I feel that way about some guitar players but I been plugging away for fifty five years at it.
Damn, I know how you feel. This video definitely scared me, seeing how easily everything comes to him...
I used to think that way. But now I see things differently. Some people are born taller, faster, and maybe some are born "smarter". But unlike in sports, in mathematics, science, literature, etc. you can always bring something new to the table, or be the lucky one who realizes something important. So just do what you like to do and don't compare yourself to others :)
@@darthmath1071 The comment is 3 years old , and I think like you nowadays.....Life is better.
Math is something I’ve never enjoyed doing but always admire people who can do it well
Math is so vast you might not even know about math you would enjoy. I think most people learn to hate math because of what math they are taught and what they are taught math is.
It also takes some time to enjoy math. Once you're proficient it's hard not to like it.
@@princeofexcess yea and see that’s so far over my head that I’ll likely never get it down
@@shuneughu4244 You dont have to :) But likely you are using some sort of math concepts and enjoying it from time to time you just dont know its math.
In another life you could like math its all about experiences.
Surprising I like maths but maths absolutely hates! I have failed miserably in every math test I have ever done. Now as a business even addition and subtraction is hard and I make mistakes and come to realize when I have already conned myself of hard earned money!
I enjoy math only when i was in elementary school
-So what did you eat for breakfast?
-Jam sandwich.
-You had a sandwich?
-Yeah.
-A jam sandwich?
-Yeah...
Best. Conversation. Ever.
The guy asking questions was taking notes so he can increase his skill in mathematics.
Jam + Sandwich = Mathskillz
its like an echo xD
Balkanac ne vjerujem
Honestly made me want a pb and J
I got that crunchy and raspberry ham right nao
Key take-away - how T was raised by parents recognizing and learning how to feed his gift. Thank you for sharing.
His father was a surgeon and his mother was a maths university professor, not exactly random parents.
"Then I partied, and so forth"
Wow those parties must have been off the chain
Ha ha ha
I wonder if there is a rule for composite parties...?
Get it? Chain rule?
That's exactly what I was thinking. LOL
off the block chain
I remember Terry very well at Flinders University in Adelaide. Child genius.
I dont think you do to be honest, i checked the roster and you wasnt on the list there, you attended jerkyjunk town univershitty and it showed that you passed the ballistical textbook pumpuff modules
@Nicholas Saris you was in detention most of the time.. you wouldnt know
@@Georgey0121 You were smoking weed outside of school, almost every day!
@@Georgey0121 I second that!
@acidtooth Wait you were dealing my product to a bunch of students?
"Whats your weakness?"
"Algebra Topology"
never heard of it.
I think he said, "Algebra and Topology", cuz he continued referencing "those".
Cesar M. I think algebraic topology is what he meant to say.
Algebraic Topology is using abstract algebra concept/structure to study Topology
Algebraic Topology is somewhat difficult. But then again, I only took it in undergrad. This dude is something else.
Algebra and topology are two big branches of mathematics. There is no such thing called Algebra topology but there is one field of mathematics called algebraic topology. Just FYI. There are many big branches in mathematics like algebra, geometry, analysis and so on. Sometime we can use technics in one branch to solve problems in another branch and this will lead to a new field of study in mathematics. Normal the technic will become an adjective and appears first in the name. Algebraic topology is the studies of topology in the context of algebra or with tools developed in algebra.
I’m eating jam sandwiches for the rest of my life.
if i do the same (at least for breakfast), then i wanna choose the type of jam!!!
I eat placenta of east asians for daily iq boost
@@pankakotakismegalomavropou3355 😂
@@nicbentulan hey I saw u at several chess channels, you like mathematics too?
@@maxwellsequation4887 oh thanks for mentioning. i have a master's in applied maths.
As you may not think, HE is 44. - Math made him a few decades younger.
That's the initial thought I had. He looked like he was 12 when he was a professor at UCLA and now he looks like a college student when he's 44. Crazy.
I commented on ur 44th like.
How can’t you see his age lol :D
@@GerstBladeworks What?? College student? XD
He definitely looks like around 40.
Math
3 year old Terence to his mom: "Mom, why are the books only about integer-dimensional manifolds?"
Mom: What?
Stefan Kaiser
Mom: “Because topological manifolds cannot have non-integral dimension, unless you modify your notion of manifold”
Mom: yes
His mom had a math degree.
@@giobrach that's actually a reasonable explanation.
Anyone ever heard of the Geometrization and Poincare Conjecture??
His voice satisfyingly resonates in my ears while wearing headphones.
This is a beautiful video. I come back to it every once and awhile for motivation and it never disappoints.
Same
" My earliest memory is 2 years old"!!!!!!! I can remember nothing before 10
I think u got alzheimers bro
I remember a random unimportant time from when I was 1, but my next oldest after that is like when I was 4 lol
Lol. My earliest memory was when i was born, it was a sunday, 5 people were in the r r r r room, 3 males 2 females. I believe i weighed 7lbs 6.23oz.
That's normal...I have many memories when I was 2 and 3
(and I'm 9)
I thought this video is at 1.5x speed...
Very Humble person.
The thing I love about Mr Terry is that he is honest and hardworking that can be understood by this interview. Still trying to know more about you by watching your clips.
His brain 240 FPS, his mouth 60 hz
@William Darko jokes can't be explained but hz receiver, pfs sender.
@William Darko dude... his joke makes sense
William Darko the are. If you have 60hz display you canny show anything above 60fps. Learn how computers and their displays behave.
@@cheetodeleto9432
and basically, this is the joke itself!
@William Darko there are
"My boy is wicked smart".
Your're a cultured man
Love the reference
Ayyyyy will hunting is
*"Mah bois wicket smaht"
Goodwill Hunting
*Once, during a Lebesgue measure theory, our teacher spoke about Terence Tao. He had stars in the eyes while he was speaking*
Maths moi ça ! I had the pleasure of sitting next to Terry in class - and was very proud when I solved a problem faster than him!
Idjles Erle Really? I genuinely envy you!
I think i can do a lot better in studies ( I'm called geek everywhere already), but I procrastinate, A LOT. like, full final exam studies on last day. I imagine what I could do if all the laziness went away.
so basically you are just a smart lazy person. Welcome to the club
It doesn't go away. You train it away
Same when my math professor (phd from MIT) talked about Tao one time when I was in his office.
I love how he and Zvezdelina both remember how they met over question 6 at the australian olympiad.
He misremembered her nationality though lol
he's like overclocked
It's the m-m-me-meth
5.0ghz
9000 GHz
That's because he is overclocked...
Either that or we're really slow?
So often the smartest genius is humble and acts not the most clever.
You will know more things that you don’t know when you know more
@@Oblivion1407 I always eat more things that I don't eat when I eat more.
geometric art why did I laugh 😹
not all of course, we can't generalize
Often, but not always. Gauss was very arrogant.
That guy is so good at maths and so forth
a-a-nd y-yea
And he had a jam sandwich at breakfast.
Yeah.
A jam sandwich.
Yeah.
8:57 Fun fact: That man on the right is Grigori Perelman a math genius who solved one of the world’s most challenging mathematical problems but turned down a prestigious medal and a $1 million prize that went with it.
I heard a story about him and I could not help but wonder what this man was thinking and how he view things in this world
Most geniuses have a little madness. I can’t imagine any normal person turning down that much money
Why
@@blockland30Perelman lives in Moscow, that money would make him the target of gold diggers and kidnappers.
He became disillusioned when other mathematicians claimed that they had developed the proof. Mathematics which, for the most part, is pursued by humans who are dedicated to truth and possess integrity has become tainted by societal rot!
Oh, he would do some real damage if he stepped into a casino.
oh my gosh underrated LOL
21 vibes
Probability distribution
He’d count cards without getting caught. Like Ben Campbell but better.
Forget cards, he could count the roulette wheel.
He seems like a well adjusted guy. Not the sort of introverted eccentric you might expect.
That’s clearly a stereotype
He doesn't feel naturally comfortable answering a lot of questions but I got a feeling like he's humble and he wants to give back even though he may really hate interviews.
@@TheOne-jm6tg Not so much, i've been to a couple meetings where there are a bunch of geeks and they generally turn out to be assholes
He probably learnt a lot about his weaknesses while growing up rather than being conceited about his strengths.
Terry Tao more like Terry 2π
haha nice
👏👏
Freakybananayo more like Terry 2 pi? I don’t get it
@@tobblesmash6193 The greek letter Tau τ = 2π.
DeathByFist ahhhh, did not know that, thanks
He looks exactly as what you'd imagine the world's greatest mathematician would look like.
The best is Grigori Perelman
Because he is the best one, and that's why he looks exactly like the best one
No gauss or euler is the greatest
If Stephen Hawking never got ALS, they'd hang out and have a similar look...
@@supertester23 sources?
The "Romanian woman" whom he mentions as solving the problem is Zvezdelina Stankova (my professor of two semesters, and is actually Bulgarian).
Also been on Numberphile! :D
Ning McKenzie I'm romanian..
wow
and also a contributor of Numberphile
Cool! Thanks!
8:58 - what an absolutely solid answer that transcends far more than mathematics.
"my weaknesses are algebra and topology"
me: oooh maybe i'm better at that than him
inner me: dude no
His personal standards for "weaknesses" are still way higher than the skill of most of us average mortals, lol...
By algebra, I think he means abstract algebra (group theory and stuff), not the high school algebra everyone learns
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! "Dude, no"
what is group theory?
@@danpt2000 stuff
5:06 I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. - maya angelou misattributed
'I don't remember much about, um, our conversation, except I remember (...) I really felt like I was being treated like an equal.'
You know the Riemann hypothesis is hard to solve when the best mathematician doesn’t want to solve it.
Ray Gun He‘s close. RH requires Lambda = 0, so in his words, if RH holds then „just ever so slightly“.
I have to use google to find out what that is.
I think you need to re-watch the video, he says it doesn't work like that. It's not that he doesn't want solve it but that mathematics is built on the works of other mathematicians and that the mathematical tools aren't there yet as far as any mathematician can see and that he'd be the first to go for it when the right tools shows up.
@Mr. H "He could be the one to invent the tools though"
You can't always purposefully invent the tools, especially not for such a famous problem. If we knew how to do that, we'd also know how to solve it because in this case inventing the tools would be equivalent to finishing the reasoning. For complex problems like that tools might invented by pure chance when solving something completely unrelated. Then someone suddenly realize that this new thing can be applied to a part of another problem like this one, and solve a bit more of it or if everyone's lucky, the rest of it.
@Mr. H Are you offended? Grow up.
"I was 2 years old"...when I finished calc 3
He did
@@badam9656 wait really whaaat
There’s no way that’s true
@@JohnWick-si8rk no it wasnt lol
If you play this video on 0.75X he will sound like a normal person.
i play everything 1.75x
He sounds like he just smoked a joined and started to relax after I set the speed 0.75
And if you slow down his brain to 0.75* he'll still be way smarter than a normal person.
What I can say is that he must have a great singing voice (rich and resonant).
Lol he speaks so fast that youvdont hear that disorhated sound
Love watching Terrence Tao's interviews. The answer most people seem to avoid is how much love they received from their community to succeed. Did teachers take time to teach him the concepts? Were the parent's attending teacher parent conferences? Did he have tutors? Was public school beneficial or did he go to private school? Did he teach his fellow students or just keep to himself? Does he have a photographic memory and if so much of the questions before are irrelevant now. Very important questions that a lot don't think of when looking over geniuses. Even the place he was raised can have a profound effect on how likely he is to succeed.
Just got into UCLA for math. Looking forward to the chance to take a class from Tao :-)
That's amazing.
How has it been?
famous last words
@Jeff Ahn ahahaha
he's a brilliant teacher, really takes the time to explain the material well and is actually available for office hours. I sat in a class he taught once. (Never took a class with him though -- I did physics, not math, and he only taught grad courses.) Cool guy.
He looks exactly how I thought the greatest mathematician would look like, for some reason.
He probably knows Karate.
@@kennethhill613 lol
That's racist
He's also the world champion at arcade dancing games
If I was making a movie about the best mathematician I'd cast him as the lead actor.
I'm the best mathematician in the world and so forth.
😆
Lol
I didn't finish first, second or third. And so, fourth.
@@sillysausage4549 well played :D
@@ArminvB90 thank you, sir.
What an intelligent and humble guy. I really wish I had the intelligence he possesses. He's my idol and inspiration now. 💕
Intel core i21 powered by Tao!
@Tidder T ah correct! I forgot the odd counting..damnit. Gonna make it 21 then..
You mean Intel core i2π
@@anshum1675 why doesn't this comment have a lot of likes
@@colorcookie6088 I guess they don't get it.
@@anshum1675 yep
Is it me, or most mathematicians are soft spoken and extremely humble?
yea
Very true
Don't be fooled, some are psychopaths.
Not the ones I had in my school lol. They were the biggest psychopaths.
A french one
This dude remembers things from when he was two years old. Meanwhile I can't remember what I eat for lunch today.
short term memory and long term memory have to be viewed seperately. I can remember a short scene in my life in which I was a toddler
thats short term memory.
Sometimes I can't remember what I said 10 seconds ago... it's especially awkward during interview...
Maybe it was a jam sandwich
I forgot to eat lunch today
“One of my earliest memories is from when I was two years old” that alone says something lol.
He looks very humble! I like him.
I really like this guy. he is an absolute genius, but he is never showing off
Very interesting look into the math mind of a genius. Anyway when he says he "struggles with algebra", I'm certain he means abstract algebra.
No one distinguishes "abstract" algebra from the excuse of numeric manipulation people mistakenly call algebra in high school in university.
Are you 'certain' though...?
Okay, but not everybody watching Numberphile will know the difference.
Victor P. He said algebraic topology, not abstract algebra. Pretty much any field incorporates abstract algebra in some way so it would be pretty dull to think that he struggles with it. Algebraic topology uses algebraic methods to solve problems in topology, for example constructing the fundamental group for a given topological space or breaking it down in smaller parts with CW-complexes. From my small experience with is that it is a really technical area and is for me pretty hard to grasp.
+TIMS3O Actually, Tao said "algebra *_and_* topology" are his weakest areas, not "algebraic topology". " *_Those_* have always been my weakest *_areas_* ." 7:40
"If we all thought the same way, we all had similar philosophy, we would be much poorer" great quote!
The most awesome thing is how he has the comfort to call mathematics tricks, like he feels empowered by math rather than fearing it and I truly believe this is what is holding too many of us back. That a lot of people fear math. It's like swimming.
If you can swim comfortably, it doesn't matter how deep or vast it is as long as it is calm of course. But if you can't swim, even the pool can be freaky and even dangerous.
Great explanation bro, +1
Samuel Hauptmann van Dam Why would anyone be afraid of math? Is the underlying fear the fear of being wrong, or having an incomplete understanding of it? Then that's an academic problem. Unfortunately, too many people are discouraged in today's academic spaces.
I think there is a lot to it.
Honestly, a lot of teachers that isn't math teachers, which is most teachers, just doesn't appreciate math and for those who do, I think math is like truth and doesn't really care if others believe it?
Like, you could disagree but I am actually using it to get to the moon and you won't get their either without me no matter how much you disagree.
I think a lot of it is in the lack of appreciation and how to perceive math - like you said, though you had the negative angle on it. I think a lot of people sees math as a barrier to in between themselves and what they want rather than a tool to increase the speed of how you are getting there. Like the mountain or the sea.
A lot of people have said it before but the why is just as important as the how. Especially when you have to get comfortable with the journey.
Thanks! Makes me all proud. :D
Of course he doesn't fear. People with IQ lower than 120 fear math.
Releasing a video about a guy named Tao on pi day? I think numberphile is run by taoists lol
ender_scythe You see, it's called a joke. You can tell by the lol at the end
+
Taoist... Tauist... Tau...
τ > π confirmed
"τ > π confirmed"
We already knew that. It's a fact.
But why the animosity, Jumbo?
It is very satisfying to get such humble opinion from such a capable mathematician. Thank you for making this video.
4:45 the comments on Erdos correspond with the general picture of him i gathered from a wonderful biography of him "The Man Who Only Loved Numbers." He was known to have a huge knowledge of a range of mathematical subjects and part of his brilliance was as a collaborator. He could always find problems that were appropriate for the level of his interlocutor and productive for them to work out together as equals. A great team player.
Win some, you lose some - dude got a 95.51% right.
Teacher: Why didn't you solve this problem?
Me: 9:41 to 10:15
Teacher: That's not an excuse, that's another F.
He is not in the business of wasting time on everything. If there is an opening then he would try to play to win. Probability genius too.
F
😂
This comment is gold.
Underated comment
Love this channel!! so interesting that you brought a more personal interview about such a incredible person!!
Erdős Pál
Today will be the only sum day and pi day of our lives. 3/14/17
joshua ibrahim White Valentine's day
Whoa, you're right. Nice observation.
Pi is 3.1415
wouldn't 3/14/19 be a sum day? 3+1+4+1 = 9
Luk Yat Ming I think he is doing 3 + 14 = 17
imagine that just one of your flexes is that Erdös wrote you a letter of recomendation for Princetone ☠️
Super badass
Yeah but he's more intelligent than Erdos. His iq is higher than his. So nothing to be impressed about.
@@ORNAMENTS_CLO "So nothing to be impressed about." That's pretty funny.
@@mikedelhoo who cares which has the higher IQ anyway
@@dielaughing73 "who cares which has the higher IQ anyway" You'll have to ask Kicks.
His brain working faster than the speed of his mouth.
And so forth
That's because he is not a rapper
Please don't make fun of him. I see a lot of people here making fun of his speech. As a stutterer myself, I can tell he has a stuttering problem yet he is trying his best not to stutter. It takes immense work to not stutter when you have a stutter. It is like being blind but showing people you are not. I know this from personal experience. Just the fact that he is speaking without any of you noticing his obvious stutter is so awesome.
@@edwardspencer9397 I do not know about that fact and I was not making fun of him. I really thought that way. I thought It should be the same way when our handwriting is bad because our brain goes faster. Sorry if what I said sounds offensive. But I am his huge fan! :)
@@edwardspencer9397 No one is making fun of him.
Bruce lee’ s matematical recreatiron
I was waiting for a Terence Tao interview on Numberphile for so long.
anyone notice his stutter? pretty interesting how intelligent people tend to stammer a bit when they speak.
true
I do not notice his stutter.. maybe is an accent
His brain moves faster than his lips can move
His brain doesn't move...
yes, i too have n-n-n-noticed this
I found this very interesting. He breaks down so many walls to the "magic" behind high level mathematics. It's refreshing to hear him concede that some problems are just beyond our current tool set no matter how "strong" you are. That's quite insightful and gives me pause because I now realize the depths of his genius (and others like him) is due to a strong work ethic. I strive to be so diligent.
Well said!
Godell's incompleteness
It just makes me want to give up
Bro is real-life Sheldon
"You win some, you lose some"
OH BOY...he hits a moment there. It's like he's having flashbacks to a warzone🤣🤣🤣
1:46 "recreational mathematics problem"
I replayed 3 times to make sure I heard it right.
Its called olympiads.
I met Terry tao when I was at UCLA. Great guy and amazing mathematician
Nobody cares!!!
@J Dotz you are
Hari Sadu you 12?
@@studentcommenter5858 about u
You cannot be proud of your predispositions! Your talent is inherent in you genetics! Why did he not choose music or sports? People like this give you pause to not blame yourself for not being extraordinary, most of it is not in your hands! Effort only counts while you are competing in the same IQ range!
imagine first day of school from summer and your first math class this dude walks in but he is 13 years old ”Hi im your new mathteacher”
Awesome
reminds me of Nagisa Shiota from Assassination Classroom
@@40_lnnrt 😂
I love how he talks about speaking things out loud to help him think more precisely.
More of Tao please. Have him present a case as well!
Terence Tao is an Aussie Mathematician genius. There is a High School that has name one of the Sporting Houses (TAO) after him.
You know he is special when he said his earliest memories was during his 2 years old period.
Calvin Tai that's not really extraordinary. I can assure you there are many people,including myself, who remember some stuff from similar age like his, and obviously it doesn't mean you are special or a genius in any way.
Rokanza Same I remember stuff from as early as 2-3 years old haha
I remember watching 9/11 news while i was eating cereal, i was 2 years old
@@jigoku2359 I remember what you had for lunch yesterday.
does 3 years old count? i have very vivid memories of 3 years old. 2 years old is a complete blur
I don't know why but I've been feeling hopeless lately. This video made me feel much better, and I'm not particularly a math fan. I guess I liked seeing someone do what he loves and just exhale his passion. It was refreshing.
this j makes me feel worse
Is it possible that his mind is going too fast for his body (mouth) which is why he speaks in such a manner?
That's exactly what happens lol.
@@juanpablooliva5382 highly doubt it, hes smart and happens to have a stutter
No.
@@ezra4869 no, that is what happens.
And so forth
I hope Terence can see this comment, I am a grade 7 and learning calculus, but my teachers ignored my potential, I know calculus is easy for Terence but I want to know what's my true potential, I started at physics and created some theories, and realize I need some maths to create one so I tried calculus and it's easy.
One of my Professors in Germany worked for quite some time with Terence Tao together. Such an honor to recieve lectures from such a man! I am so happy!
Parents still mad he ain't a doctor
Doctor of Philosophy in mathematics
He's a professor
Learn the hierarchy
@@RJ12347 they mean a medical guy
cuttin' to the chase....you know the culture ....and it's funny!.....
@@officerwizz "medical guy" lel
I need this man to teach me how to complete the square
Such a genius and so forth
I find him fascinating in the same way you find a great athlete fascinating. It's like, someone who has this brilliance and natural ability at what they do, even though I don't understand how they do it.
As a post-grad student, the idea of a PHd at 20 is....intimidating, to say the least.
William james sidis became a professor at 16
Such a nice person! And a genius!
I know I'll not be so good like him, but I atleast love maths too, not for medals, money, etc. , but for entertainment, enjoyment.
The way he describes he couldn't understand the why of mathematics at younger age is very relatable, disregarding the mathematics I think we all experience new dimensions of clarity the older we get.
"I studied ballistics in school. Fascinating subject, things go up and things come down".
2:48 "AND THEN I PARTIED AND SO FORTH".... had a Pepsi
All he wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi.
Coke*
@@liquidbraino a pepsi?
Yes
A damn pepsi
Ya