Herbert Turnbull Born : August 31, 1885 Died : May 4, 1961 Browse All Authors Top 4 quotes by Herbert Turnbull The usefulness of mathematics in furthering the sciences is commonly acknowledged: but outside the ranks of the experts there is little inquiry into its nature and purpose as a deliberate human activity. Doubtless this is due to the inevitable drawback that mathematical study is saturated with technicalities from beginning to end. Herbert Turnbull purpose experts science Mathematics may humbly help in the market-place, but it also reaches to the stars. Herbert Turnbull stars may science Mathematics transfigures the fortuitous concourse of atoms into the tracery of the finger of God. Herbert Turnbull fingers atoms mathematics Attaching significance to invariants is an effort to recognize what, because of its form or colour or meaning or otherwise, is important or significant in what is only trivial or ephemeral. A simple instance of failing in this is provided by the poll-man at Cambridge, who learned perfectly how to factorize a^2 - b^2 but was floored because the examiner unkindly asked for the factors of p^2 - q^2. Herbert Turnbull learning simple math
