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‘ … Hold Infinity in the Palm of
Your Hand, and Eternity in an Hour’
Infinity has many faces. Sometimes, we perceive it as a "number"
larger than all numbers. For indigenous people of Australia
and New Guinea, infinity begins at seven. Infinity for Van Gogh
was a vast, unending plane, on which imagination is given free
rein. For the Moors - creators of exquisite mosaics and patterns
whose sophistication has never been surpassed - infinity was
a repetition of a single artistic motif. Infinity is eternity,
divinity, love, madness …
In this lecture, I plan to present a sketch of a cultural history
of infinity, spanning thousands of years. I will explain amazingly
straightforward concepts, developed by mathematician Georg Cantor,
that form the basis of our modern understanding of infinity.
Cantor had the courage to look infinity into its eyes - and
what he saw deeply shocked him. ‘I see it, but I do not
believe it,’ he exclaimed as he witnessed his discoveries,
unleashed, shaking mathematics to its core and changing it forever.
Cantor died in a mental institution. What drove him to insanity?
Does infinity really exist? If so, where can we find it? Is
our universe large enough to encompass infinity?
Although no mathematics background is required, certain amount
of courage is expected from those in attendance. This lecture
might threaten, and possibly change, some of our most cherished
notions about life and the world we live in.
It might take all of eternity to reach infinity. But sometimes,
infinity gets so close to us, that, as if in a dream, we feel
that we can hold it in the palm of our hand.
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Miroslav Lovric is an associate professor in the Department
of Mathematics and Statistics at McMaster University.
His areas of research interest include Riemannian geometry,
applications of differential geometry in statistics
and engineering (filtering theory), and mathematics
education.
Miroslav has been involved with various aspects of
teaching, from lecturing in the Faculty of Science and
in the Arts and Science Programme, and developing inquiry
and teacher training courses, to giving public lectures
on a wide variety of topics that link mathematics to
art, architecture and other areas of human endeavour.
He has taught at universities in Canada, U.S., England
and New Zealand. Miroslav has received numerous awards
for his efforts in teaching and mathematics education,
both from his students and from his peers. In 2000,
he received the OCUFA (Ontario provincial) award. In
2001, he was awarded the National 3M Teaching Fellowship
Award.
Miroslav is a co-leader of an international project
in mathematics education, whose aim to develop efficient
strategies for dealing with issues in the transition
between secondary and tertiary education.
Besides publishing in his research areas, Miroslav
wrote a textbook on vector calculus, that has been used
in universities across North America and Europe. Presently,
he is working on a book on mosaics, which will connect
mathematical ideas of symmetry with a number of concepts
in art and design.
Miroslav
Lovric's Home Page
The
Spec Interviews Professor Lovric
This is a free public
lecture. All are welcome!
Tuesday, March 9,
2004
Hamilton Spectator Auditorium
Doors open @ 6:30 pm
Lecture begins at 7:00 pm
To reserve your seat
e-mail sciencecity@mcmaster.ca
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