[630]. The great mathematicians have acted on the principle “Divinez avant de demontrer,” and it is certainly true that almost all important discoveries are made in this fashion.—Kasner, Edward.
The Present Problems in Geometry; Bulletin American Mathematical Society, Vol. 11, p. 285.
[631]. “Divide et impera” is as true in algebra as in statecraft; but no less true and even more fertile is the maxim “auge et impera.” The more to do or to prove, the easier the doing or the proof.—Sylvester, J. J.
Proof of the Fundamental Theorem of Invariants; Philosophic Magazine (1878), p. 186; Collected Mathematical Papers, Vol. 3, p. 126.
[632]. As in the domains of practical life so likewise in science there has come about a division of labor. The individual can no longer control the whole field of mathematics: it is only possible for him to master separate parts of it in such a manner as to enable him to extend the boundaries of knowledge by creative research.—Lampe, E.
Die reine Mathematik in den Jahren 1884-1899, p. 10.
[633]. With the extension of mathematical knowledge will it not finally become impossible for the single investigator to embrace all departments of this knowledge? In answer let me point out how thoroughly it is ingrained in mathematical science that every real advance goes hand in hand with the invention of sharper tools and simpler methods which at the same time assist in understanding earlier theories and to cast aside some more complicated developments. It is therefore possible for the individual investigator, when he makes these sharper tools and simpler methods his own, to find his way more easily in the various branches of mathematics than is possible in any other science.—Hilbert, D.
Mathematical Problems; Bulletin American Mathematical Society, Vol. 8, p. 479.
[634]. It would seem at first sight as if the rapid expansion of the region of mathematics must be a source of danger to its future progress. Not only does the area widen but the subjects of study increase rapidly in number, and the work of the mathematician tends to become more and more specialized. It is, of course, merely a brilliant exaggeration to say that no mathematician is able to understand the work of any other mathematician, but it is certainly true that it is daily becoming more and more difficult for a mathematician to keep himself acquainted, even in a general way, with the progress of any of the branches of mathematics except those which form the field of his own labours. I believe, however, that the increasing extent of the territory of mathematics will always be counteracted by increased facilities in the means of communication. Additional knowledge opens to us new principles and methods which may conduct us with the greatest ease to results which previously were most difficult of access; and improvements in notation may exercise the most powerful effects both in the simplification and accessibility of a subject. It rests with the worker in mathematics not only to explore new truths, but to devise the language by which they may be discovered and expressed; and the genius of a great mathematician displays itself no less in the notation he invents for deciphering his subject than in the results attained.... I have great faith in the power of well-chosen notation to simplify complicated theories and to bring remote ones near and I think it is safe to predict that the increased knowledge of principles and the resulting improvements in the symbolic language of mathematics will always enable us to grapple satisfactorily with the difficulties arising from the mere extent of the subject.—Glaisher, J. W. L.
Presidential Address British Association for the Advancement of Science, Section A., (1890), Nature, Vol. 42, p. 466.