Mathematics is as old as human civilization. Where there is civilization, there must be mathematics. Mathematics has a close relationship with human life and social activities in the early stage of development, which has solved various problems: the distribution and exchange of daily necessities such as grain, livestock and tools, the construction of houses and warehouses, the measurement of land, the construction of water conservancy projects, the compilation of calendars and so on. With the development of mathematics and the progress of human civilization, the application of mathematics has gradually expanded to more general technical and scientific fields. Since ancient Greece, mathematics has been closely related to philosophy. Since modern times, mathematics has entered the field of humanities, and the mathematization of humanities has become a powerful trend.
In today's society, with the development of mathematics and the wide application of computer technology, it can be said that the footprint of mathematics has spread all over the fields of human knowledge system. From satellites to nuclear power plants, the characteristics of high technology, such as high precision, high speed, high automation, high quality and high efficiency, are all realized by mathematical models and methods and computer control. The design and manufacture of products and engineering, product quality control, prediction and management in economy and science and technology, information processing, resource development and environmental protection, and economic decision-making all need the application of mathematics. Mathematics has many unexpected applications in modern society. On many occasions, it is no longer just an auxiliary tool. It has become the key idea and method of many major issues, and many achievements have quietly spread around us, changing our way of life. It can be said that mathematics has a far-reaching impact on modern society, and we live in the era of mathematics. The influence of mathematics on social development, on the one hand, shows the position and function of mathematics in social development, and on the other hand, reflects the literacy and quality that people as social subjects should have in mathematics in the future society.
1, mathematics and military, war
Military affairs and war are abhorrent to people, and they are the enemies of human pursuit of peace. But it has always been accompanied by the development of society, and since the emergence of society, wars have continued. Moreover, mathematics has also played an uncertain role in military and war. Mathematics plays a great role in the manufacture and improvement of weapons. /kloc-After the 6th century, many mathematicians were also ballistics. During World War I and even World War II, calculating the shooting list has always been the main task of mathematicians. Another field where mathematics plays an important role in war is cryptographic decoding, and cryptographic encryption and decoding are entirely the work of mathematics.
2. Mathematics and Art
When you talk to people engaged in music, art and other arts, as long as they have a certain knowledge and understanding of mathematics, they will say that music and art contain mathematics. The true representation of the three-dimensional real world on the two-dimensional plane in painting art needs to be based on the perspective theory in geometry. Therefore, artists have studied the perspective theory and put forward the mathematical perspective method of applying geometric principles to painting. At the same time, thinking about the characteristics of the projection of the same object on different planes has become the starting point of projective geometry.
Computer graphics based on fractal geometry provides a broader space for artists' creation and imagination. The works created with it are some vivid and charming fractal figures, such as fractal mountains, fractal coastlines, fractal clouds, fractal lakes and fractal forests. The exquisite skills displayed in these works are amazing. Faced with the huge impact of fractal art, some professors in the Academy of Fine Arts have to incorporate some fractal content into their teaching plans. It is not difficult to predict that fractal theory and its application will have a far-reaching impact on painting, sculpture, architectural design and advertising design.
3. Mathematics and life
If the demand for mathematics in natural science and social science is still far from the life of ordinary people, then let's see if mathematics is also needed in our daily life. Where is the math? In fact, the influence of mathematics on the development of the whole society is not limited to the above-mentioned professional fields. Mathematics is more and more widely used in all aspects of production and life in modern society. It has penetrated into every aspect of people's daily life and work, from daily weather forecast to personal investment methods (buying stocks, buying houses and buying insurance), from tourism to the layout and decoration of houses, to all kinds of information brought to people by news media such as TV and newspapers every day.
Food, clothing, housing and transportation are the foundation of social life. In the past, people sought to eat and wear warm clothes and live a well-off life. With the improvement of living standards, people's goals are balanced nutrition, fashionable clothes, rational use of land and comfortable houses. In fact, in daily life, the modes of schooling, employment, housing, medical care, retirement and providing for the aged are changing, becoming more selective, more dependent and more independent, which requires people to use their brains, analyze and criticize and make decisions. Faced with many choices, some people are at a loss, while others are at a loss. Whether you are used to it or not, whether you can accept it or not, the "precipitation probability" has made an impressive comparison with TV and newspapers. Some people imagine that in the near future, every message in news reports will be marked with "true probability"; In the preview of TV programs, "visible probability" will be written next to each program; In addition, there are watermelon maturity probability, train punctuality probability, prescription efficacy probability, advertising reliability probability and so on. In short, everything in the world is like this, and people just use mathematics to help restore its true colors. People in western developed countries have the deepest understanding of opportunities and choices, so they should choose categories when applying for funding; To apply for housing, you should choose the room size; Choose teachers, classrooms and class hours; Choose a doctor to see a doctor; Even the content and method of the exam are up to you to choose. Different choices mean different opportunities, and the risk comes from your decision analysis. In order to make these decisions, we need to arm ourselves with mathematical knowledge such as probability and statistics. With these mathematical knowledge, people can realize that the conditions of many problems we face are changing and conclusive.