Talk:Mathematics Made Difficult

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Mathematics Low‑priority

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Proposed deletion[edit]

This article Mathematics Made Difficult, was proposed for deletion as not notable enough.

However, it appears on the list of math articles proposed for creation Wikipedia:Requested articles/Mathematics. It was also mentioned on 3 other main pages already - these were not added after, but were pre-existing references. Google shows about 1300 hits, rather good for an out-of-print math book. From a purely commercial point of view, Amazon show used copies going from $50 to $475(!), so it's certainly notable to the folks who buy it (a similarly satirical book from the same period, "Stress Analysis of a Strapless Evening Gown", also out of print, goes for just $3 or so in paperback and $13 in hardback.)

Other opinions are of course welcome. LouScheffer (talk) 17:34, 11 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Certainly notable. This book has a serious educational purpose, approached with intelligence and wit. While not for every reader, it clearly demonstrates to those with enough background to understand the gist of its arguments, that even everyday, seemingly simple procedures such as counting and factorisation depend, in a fundamental way, on certain recurring deep structures. As such, it's a salutary reminder to those working in the field that no matter how complex or abstract their work, a basic reason for doing mathematics at all is that it has applications of concrete utility. (Or in plain English, we do maths because it's useful.) yoyo (talk) 18:11, 15 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]