January 29, 2025
How did you decide to become a math major?
I decided to become a math major after my first year at UChicago because I found the problems to be the most challenging, interesting, and rewarding out of all of the subjects I was taking. As I reflected on what major I wanted to declare, the thing that stood out to me about math is that it is completely objective -- every question has a right answer -- a unique feature that I really appreciate. I also began to wonder to myself whether mathematics was invented or discovered, and why it is so well-suited to describe the phenomena of the world we live in. These questions are what motivated me to major in math and learn as much about it as I possibly can. Also, I am a big fan of cartoons, so learning that some of the writers of many of my favorite shows were also math majors was the icing on the cake.
Favorite math course(s) and why?
My favorite math courses are Measure and Integration, as well as Honors Algebra II. I used to think that the different subareas of math were very different from each other. However, in my Measure and Integration class, we recently constructed a non-measurable set and one of the techniques in the construction involves quotienting the real numbers by the rational numbers. I learned all about quotient groups in Honors Algebra, which feels very different from analysis-focused classes, so I was very surprised that this came up in a class about measure theory! This was one of several moments in which I have been able to observe the interaction between the different subfields of math, and overall it has been a very enriching experience that has strengthened my appreciation for the subject as a whole.
Do you have any special story to tell that reflects your experience as a math major?
When I think about my experience as a math major, the quote "The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know" by Albert Einstein comes to mind. Most people would probably tell you that math is the study of numbers, but as I keep learning, I realize more and more how hard it is to even define math. What exactly is a number, anyway? I think the only definition that truly does it justice is Galileo Galilei's famous line "math is the alphabet in which God has written the universe." It's remarkable how math has helped the human race study and understand natural phenomena from probabilities to particle motion to symmetry, and how we can apply this knowledge to man-made things like the stock market and the Rubik's Cube and everything in between. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I have yet to learn.
What are your aspirations?
In light of my answer to the previous question, my aspiration is to attend graduate school because I want to learn more about math and how it encodes the world around us. I would love to someday contribute some original result to the field of mathematics, no matter how small. Pursuing graduate school would also give me the opportunity to serve as an instructor, where I could be part of others' academic journeys and pass down the knowledge that I have received so far.
What are you excited about doing after graduation? (If you know)
Time will tell! Right now, I am focused on maximizing my chances for acceptance to graduate schools next year. Aside from that, I'm looking forward to spending lots of time with family and friends, and doing as much traveling as I can after graduation.
