Mathematics is a series of methods which must be invented. One should not confuse the things being measured, which are discovered, and the methods used to make those discoveries. The methods are invented by someone and then discovered by everyone else.
The point is that the originators of mathematical methods invent them, they do not “discover them”.
But, in a way, this is not the primary issue. The more important issue is that you appreciate that mathematics is not “out there in the world” independent of the human mind.
The important thing to remember is that mathematics is a bunch of conceptual methods created for the purpose of measurement and do not exist “out there in nature”, independent of the human mind.
Outro
That brings us to the end of this episode. I hope you enjoyed our Quora questions on mathematics. If you would like clarifications on these answers or want to ask us your own mathematics questions, send them in.
Next episode we will briefly cover the nature of space and time. This will not go into great depth, but will cover the basics of what these are. Not physical aspects of the universe but conceptual relationships. More on this in the next episode!
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