Mathematics is the purest of the arts, as well as the most misunderstood. Paul Lockhart More Quotes by Paul Lockhart More Quotes From Paul Lockhart In any case, do you really think kids even want something that is relevant to their daily lives? You think something practical like compound interest is going to get them excited? People enjoy fantasy, and that is just what mathematics can provide - a relief from daily life, an anodyne to the practical workaday world. Paul Lockhart math kids thinking [Math is] not at all like science. There's no experiment I can do with test tubes and equipment and whatnot that will tell me the truth about a figment of my imagination. The only way to get at the truth about our imaginations is to use our imaginations. Paul Lockhart imagination use math So how does one go about proving something like this? It's not like being a lawyer, where the goal is to persuade other people; nor is it like a scientist testing a theory. This is a unique art form within the world of rational science. We are trying to craft a "poem of reason" that explains fully and clearly and satisfies the pickiest demands of logic, while at the same time giving us goosebumps. Paul Lockhart unique math art Mathematicians enjoy thinking about the simplest possible things, and the simplest possible things are imaginary. Paul Lockhart mathematician enjoy thinking