Eric Temple Bell

Quotes

• “Euclid taught me that without assumptions there is no proof. Therefore, in any argument, examine the assumptions.”

• “The cowboys have a way of trussing up a steer or a pugnacious bronco which fixes the brute so that it can neither move nor think. This is the hog-tie, and it is what Euclid did to geometry.”

• “Obvious” is the most dangerous word in mathematics.

• “The mistakes and unresolved difficulties of the past in mathematics have always been the opportunities of its future; and should analysis ever appear to be without or blemish, its perfection might only be that of death.”

• “Science makes no pretension to eternal truth or absolute truth; some of its rivals do.”

Books by Eric Temple Bell in order

Books by Eric Temple Bell in the order they were published, from Men of Mathematics (1900) to The Last Problem (1961).

1. 1Men of MathematicsMen of Mathematics1900
2. 2The Cyclotomic Quinary QuinticThe Cyclotomic Quinary Quintic1912
3. 3An Arithmetical Theory of Certain Numerical FunctionsAn Arithmetical Theory of Certain Numerical Functions1915
4. 4Five Studies in MathematicsFive Studies in Mathematics1926
5. 5Algebraic ArithmeticAlgebraic Arithmetic1927
6. 6Green FireGreen Fire1928
7. 7Debunking ScienceDebunking Science1930
8. 8Mathematics, Queen and Servant of ScienceMathematics, Queen and Servant of Science1931
9. 9NumerologyNumerology1933
10. 10The Search for TruthThe Search for Truth1935
11. 11Men of Mathematics, Volume TwoMen of Mathematics, Volume Two1937
12. 12The Handmaiden of the SciencesThe Handmaiden of the Sciences1937
13. 13Man and His LifebeltsMan and His Lifebelts1938
14. 14The Development of MathematicsThe Development of Mathematics1940
15. 15The Time StreamThe Time Stream1946
16. 16The Forbidden GardenThe Forbidden Garden1947
17. 17The Magic of NumbersThe Magic of Numbers1947
18. 18Seeds of LifeSeeds of Life1951
19. 19The Crystal HordeThe Crystal Horde1952
20. 20The Last ProblemThe Last Problem1961
21. 21Before the DawnBefore the Dawn
22. 22G.O.G. 666G.O.G. 666
23. 23Seeds of Life, and White LilySeeds of Life, and White Lily
24. 24The Iron StarThe Iron Star