SYMBOL AND MEANING IN MATHEMATICS （在数学符号和意义）.pdfVIP

, , . SYMBOL AND MEANING IN MATHEMATICS ALICE M. DEAN Mathematics and Computer Science Department Skidmore College May 26,1995 There is perhaps no other field of study that uses symbols as plentifully and precisely as does mathematics. figure 1, for instance, contains a concise, grammatically correct sentence (except for the lack of a period at the end) that uses mathematical symbols to state one of the most fundamental definitions of calculus. This mathematical sentence illustrates the fact that mathematicians have, over thousands of years, developed a language with which to express their ideas. This language is in some sense more complex than a natural language (indeed it builds upon natural language) since the meanings of its symbols and words are highly precise; on the other hand, its words have little of the ambiguity and nuance of natural language and so in that sense it could be considered simpler. Of course, mathematics is far more than a language: it is the goal of mathematics to uncover and describe the fundamental patterns and symmetries underlying our universe. In this article I hope to show some of the ways in which the symbols of mathematics, like the symbols of any language, help us express our thoughts as well as shape the way we think. Figure 1. A mathematical sentence Mathematical symbols a