Beauty and truth in mathematics

Doris Schattschneider

pp. 41-57

in: Nathalie Sinclair, David Pimm, William Higginson (eds), Mathematics and the aesthetic, Berlin, Springer, 2007

Abstract

"That's beautiful!" is the unsolicited exclamation. The response is not to a painting, a breathtaking view or a flawless musical performance, but rather to a mathematical statement or a mathematical proof. What brings such aesthetic pleasure to a mathematician or to those who wish to appreciate mathematics and engage in it?