On New Year’s Day in 2021, an article on mathematics rushed to the second place on the Zhihu Hot Question List, with over 15 million views and more than 1.3 million readings. The question was: Is Mathematics Invented or Discovered? (数学是人类的发明,还是发现?)
What makes a mathematics question into the hot list that normally only social hotspots can enter? The article neither lists abstract mathematical formulas nor rises to the level of obscure philosophy concepts. Instead, it starts from Raphael’s masterpiece “The School of Athens”, and tells from the perspective of the history of science and technology, where mathematicians used “infinity” as a tool. From there, a whole new world has been created.
The East and West Learning Connections proudly presents Mr Yingfeng Zhang, the author of the article in question, to give us an informative and insightful lecture on topics touched by the article yet have not been discussed in detail, such as:
- Do animals know mathematics?
- How did early civilizations discover mathematics?
- How did ancient Greeks invent infinity?
- Why is our universe finite?
- What other secrets are hidden in Raphael’s painting?
About the lecturer:
Mr Yingfeng Zhang, one of the founding directors of The East and West Learning Connections, is an advocate for generalist education in science and technology for teenagers, college students and technology enthusiasts.
He founded QHOW Technology in Toronto in 2019, an educational hub that equips participants with knowledge of technology, business, and hands-on experience in product design and development. Yingfeng holds a Master’s degree in Software Engineering from Shandong University, China. Before he moved to Canada four years ago, he had worked as a science and technology educator and consultant for over a decade, training software developer employees on cutting-edge technologies and scientific ideas, and guiding university students to develop software products, and helping them write and publish technology books.
He is an Honourable Contributor (2014) on Zhihu, the Chinese equivalent of Quora. He has written more than 100 answers in the fields of education, mathematics, science, and history. He has around 210K followers on Zhihu, and his articles were saved by readers for more than 400K times.
Currently, Yingfeng is writing a book, The Formal Universe, on the history of science, and some of the unsolved, interesting questions. The article, “Is Mathematics an Invention, or a Discovery?” Is the first chapter of the book.
Grown-ups or young students, everyone is welcome to join us, and enjoy an enlightening lecture that Yingfeng is bound to bring with his rich knowledge and witty style!
Time: Saturday April 3, 2021 at 8-9:30 P.M. Eastern Time
Language: Mandarin
Cost: Free
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89493720036?pwd=d0d4cEVndS9NMjkrWmw3aUpwZjNsZz09
Meeting will open at 7:45pm, capacity is 100 participants. First come, first serve.
For inquiries, please contact us at info@eawlc.org. Thanks!
趣味科学讲座:数学是人类的发明,还是发现?
2021年新年元旦,一个数学问题冲入了知乎热榜全站第2名,获得了1500多万的热度,和130多万的阅读量,这个问题就是《数学是人类的发明,还是发现?》https://www.zhihu.com/question/19746620/answer/1652522409
一篇数学文章,究竟写了什么,能冲上平时只有社会热点才能上的关注热榜?
这篇文章既没有罗列抽象的数学公式、也没有上升到晦涩的哲学高度,而是从拉斐尔的名画《雅典学院》开始,从科技史的角度,讲述数学家是如何以“无穷”为工具,开创一个全新的世界。
在这个新世界中,人类的思想得到了前所未有的解放,并加速了科学与技术的进步,让人类文明进入一个快速腾飞的时代。
相信读完这篇文章,会给你很多新的视角,来理解数学和自然科学的关系。很多人评论,这是一篇让人看完就想学数学的文章。
俱乐部很高兴邀请到了文章的作者张英锋先生,为大家做一场科技史的讲座,探讨文章中没有展开的有趣话题,以及文章背后的故事。比如:
- 动物也会数学吗?
- 早期文明人类如何发现数学?
- 古希腊数学家如何发明无穷?
- 宇宙为什么是有限的,而不是无限的?
- 拉斐尔名画《雅典学院》中还有哪些秘密?
主讲人
张英锋,加拿大趣好科技(QHOW Technology)创始人,致力于科技通才的教育,培训大中学生及科技爱好者成为懂科技、懂商业、能设计和开发产品的科技人才。他还是东西联学社理事会(前身学东西俱乐部)的创始成员,共同推动俱乐部在2021年成为正式注册的联邦非营利组织。
2004年自山东大学软件工程硕士毕业后,英锋进入教育培训领域,曾在多家软件企业担任培训部门的负责人,并与十几所高校开展软件人才的培养合作,指导大学生编写出版科技书籍,设计开发软件产品,让大学生掌握工业界的开发技术和经验。获得2014年度荣誉答主称号,在教育、数学、科学和历史等领域撰写了100多篇回答,被收藏了40多万次,并拥有约21万粉丝。
目前他正在撰写《形式宇宙》,介绍科学史、探讨其中思想起源、未解之谜、对今人的启示等一系列有趣的问题。冲上知乎热榜的文章“,数学是人类的发明,还是发现?”便是这本书的第一章。
无论您是成人还是孩子,只要对未知充满好奇,都欢迎来和我们一起学习、交流,领略英锋老师渊博、风趣的授课风格与魅力!
- 时间: 4月3日周六 晚8:00到9:30 (加东时间)
- 使用语言:中文普通话
- 免费Zoom公益讲座,限员100人。
- 会议厅7:45打开,位置有限先到先得。
- 注册Zoom会议请点击下方链接
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89493720036?pwd=d0d4cEVndS9NMjkrWmw3aUpwZjNsZz09
如有疑问,请发邮件至info@eawlc.org