陶哲轩如何开始你的数学生涯.pdf

On requests for career advice Every so often, I receive a query asking for advice on mathematical career issues, such as • What fields in mathematics should one study? • What mathematical texts should one buy or read? • What problems should one try to solve? • How should one approach mathematical problems? • How should one write mathematical papers? • What universities should one apply to? • What strategies should one pursue to increase one’s chances of admission (e.g. to UCLA)? • More generally, how should one “succeed” in mathematics? These requests for advice are of course very flattering. Unfortunately, these questions are too general, and too dependent on one’s specific circumstances, interests, options, and context for me to offer anything other than generic platitudes (see below). Because of this, and because of lack of available time, I am regretfully unable to meaningfully respond to any such queries. I would recommend instead consulting with one’s high school, undergraduate or graduate advisor, who is more attuned to your specific situation and will be able to offer more relevant advice. In particular, I am unable to personally advise anyone other than UCLA graduate students who have already passed their qualifying exams. Regarding mathematics competitions : I have not participated in mathematics competitions since 1988, and am not familiar with how they work nowadays. For advice on how to solve mathematical problems, you can try my book on the subject . Also, I should say that while mathematics competitions are certainly a lot of fun, they are very different activities from mathematical learning or mathematical research; don’t expect the problems you get in, say, graduate study, to have the same cut-and-dried, neat flavour that an Olympiad problem does. (While individual steps in the solution might be able to be finished off quickly by