Hi, this week we've explored many of the powers
mathematics gives us. The power to create, to
see patterns, to think clearly, to predict uncertainty,
and to build a better future. Today, I want to
consider a different kind of power. One that
spans generations. Now, unlike many fields of
knowledge, mathematics does not become obsolete.
Think about medicine. Treatments improve as researchers
make new discoveries. Technology changes every
single year. Scientific theories are refined
as new evidence becomes available. And that is
one of the strengths of science. It is constantly
evolving. But mathematics is different. When
Euclid wrote The Elements, More than 2 ,000 years
ago, he established geometric principles that
we still teach today. We have not replaced the
Pythagorean theorem. The calculus developed by
Newton and Leibniz more than 300 years ago remains
a foundation for great careers such as engineering,
physics, and actual science. Even the work of
one of my favorite mathematicians, Srinivas Ramanujan,
continues to inspire new mathematical discoveries
more than a century after he died. We still study
and apply Ramanujan's formulas. And that's one
of the beautiful things about mathematics. New
discoveries do not make the old ones irrelevant.
They build upon them. So every time you learn
a new theorem or master a new technique, you
are joining a conversation that has been going
on for thousands of years. You are benefiting
from the imagination and perseverance of countless
mathematicians who came before you. Their work
becomes part of your own mathematical toolbox.
In some ways, mathematical knowledge compounds
like compound interest. Each generation inherits
what the previous generation discovered. It adds
something new and it passes an even richer body
of knowledge to the next. We certainly do not
start from scratch. As they say, we stand on
the shoulders of those who came before us. So
when I reflect on this idea about math, it can
be both humbling and inspiring. The mathematics
that you're learning today is not temporary knowledge
that you will discard next year. It is part of
a timeless language that connects people across
cultures, continents, and centuries. Tomorrow
we will conclude our week by reminding ourselves
of the popular expression, with all this power
comes responsibilities. We can use mathematics
to improve lives, but like any powerful tool,
we can also use math in ways that cause harm.
The choice of how we use that power is ultimately
ours.