Writing a Mad Mathematician

I've thought of adding one mad mathematician as a character in a technophobic world. They'll rile at him at his equations as a secret code for the devil and whatnot. It doesn't help that he's a schizophrenic that often makes bold claims which would stir up more strife.

The problem is, I'm unsure what a real mathematician acts like. Sure, they're human beings, but in my perspective they are more like mythical creatures that I have to scour all over the globe for just to peer into their souls. Plus, I am notoriously horrible at math, so there is a huge doubt on whether I might be able to write this character or not.

Well, I'll start with "it varies from person to person".

That being said, I'd found that if there is any word that applies to many—if not all—people who are deep into maths, it's "passionate". They are so deep into it because they are good at it and like it and there's no reason for them not to be passionate about it.

They are also used to doing whatever particular bit of higher-level maths they keep on doing, because they'd simply gotten used to it and it comes easy to them now; think of it as the inversion of "don't use it, lose it". Sometimes that leads to something that is not much different from "code switching", only with maths instead of languages, talking with people about something and then getting all abstract the way they have when they delve into maths (for higher-level maths, so to say, often requires the ability to think in a fairly abstract way); that, of course, can be taken care of the same way code switching can be so it's not guaranteed that someone will have that just because they are passionate about something like maths, but considering that your character is just a bit mad they might have it so I'd listed it as a possibility.

Additionally, those people, depending on where they are located (and thus on whose vicinity they are in) may be accused of not making any sense when they start talking. The accusation is ... wrong as it is, but it is rooted in truth, as it is not that they don't make sense per se but rather that they tend to start their explanations with level as close as they are on right now—as is human wont—and maths is one of the disciplines where not knowing the basics leaves one most likely incapable of understanding anything that relies on those, that going from the lowest level to quite a high one. So people who are passionate about it and spending time with other people passionate about it, sometimes tend to forget that they might happen to be talking with someone who doesn't already know, and because of the nigh-necessity of knowing the basics (as opposed to things like history, where not knowing the basics can limit one's ability to understand but not to the level where one would have no idea what is being said) they come across as incoherent or insane or whatever other word you want to insert here.

Ultimately, though, that's all things in our world, and in a technophobic world things might be different, very different. So for as long as you make it make sense in the context of the story and make sure that there are no plot holes dotting the plot road, feel free to make the character any way you need them to be.

There are tropes for such a thing, you know.

Mad Mathematician

Mathematician's Answer

Mouthful of Pi

If My Calculations Are Correct

Ludicrous Precision

...etc. You get the idea.

edited 23rd Nov '15 3:45:03 PM by pwiegle

Well, the mathematican would be mad (not necessarily lining up with any RL mental illness), and in a technophobic world there's no structure or system on which to follow and rely on.

Which mean said mathematican would be coming up with stuff on the fly.

Which means... make up anything you want! Any wrongness would be in-character and reasonable in-universe anyway

An insane person can still make mathematical equations that are as correct as a sane person, though. For example, someone who constantly hears illusory voices won't necessarily become worse at adding up numbers.

edited 25th Nov '15 2:27:34 AM by editerguy

I'm back after a while, been too distracted by R Ps, so here I am. I don't think a mathematician has to regale the others about how smart he is and teach them equations, but will make light references to them as opposed to a heavy handed approach that will involve chalking up calculations that people will normally find confusing if they haven't gone past algebra.

Plus, I'm trying to write a world that has some dimension of realism in it. The setting is still in the future Earth that's gone technophobic and religious. I'm still trying to piece these things together so I won't do something stupid, but I guess I'll have to wing some topics.