Richard Courant quotes

Richard Courant was a German mathematician renowned for his work in analysis, applied mathematics, and for co-authoring influential mathematical texts. His efforts led to the founding of the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences in New York, which became a leading center for research and education. He left a lasting legacy in shaping twentieth-century mathematics and mathematical education. Here are 5 of his quotes:

It becomes the urgent duty of mathematicians, therefore, to meditate about the essence of mathematics, its motivations and goals and the ideas that must bind divergent interests together.

Richard Courant

Mathematics as an expression of the human mind reflects the active will, the contemplative reason, and the desire for aesthetic perfection. Its basic elements are logic and intuition, analysis and construction, generality and individuality. Though different traditions may emphasize different aspects, it is only the interplay of these antithetic forces and the struggle for their synthesis that constitute the life, usefulness, and supreme value of mathematical science.

Richard Courant

Empirical evidence can never establish mathematical existence--nor can the mathematician's demand for existence be dismissed by the physicist as useless rigor. Only a mathematical existence proof can ensure that the mathematical description of a physical phenomenon is meaningful.

Richard Courant

Mathematics as an expression of the human mind reflects the active will, the contemplative reason, and the desire for aesthetic perfection. Its basic elements are logic and intuition, analysis and construction, generality and individuality.

Richard Courant