At 24, Kurt Gödel established himself as perhaps the greatest logician of the 20th century. Standing against the intellectual currents of his time, he unveiled two theorems in 1930 showing that a mathematical system can not prove all truths related to it, nor can such a system prove itself consistent. Like Albert Einstein, who would become his closest friend, Gödel maintained an old-fashioned faith that abstract objective truths exist. In fact, his groundbreaking 'œincompleteness' theorems were intended to disarm creeping relativism. Like Einstein's work, however, Gödel's was soon co-opted and misrepresented by the thinkers he opposed, and the paranoid academic became increasingly anxious about his ideas being suppressed. Apparently fearing that rivals wanted him poisoned, he starved himself to death in 1978.
Rebecca Goldstein 'œmakes the ideal guide' to Gödel's fascinating work and tortured end, said Laura Miller in Salon.com. A professor of philosophy 'œas well as the author of five interesting, if highly cerebral, novels,' she grounds this marvelous intellectual biography with 'œan eminently lucid explanation' of Gödel's theorems and their implications. Roughly speaking, what Gödel did was put a mathematical twist on the paradox inherent in the declaration, 'œThis statement is false.' A math major could spend a semester working up to a complete understanding of Gödel's 'œspectacular' proofs, said Polly Shulman in The New York Times, but Goldstein makes the theorems' essence fit 'œmagically into a few pages of a book for laypeople.' The key is her attitude toward Gödel himself: a combination of 'œtenderness and awe.'
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
5 refreshing podcasts you may have missed this springThe Week Recommends Exploring the cultural impact of Jerry Springer, a look at contemporary spending habits and more
-
Mortgages: The future of Fannie and FreddieFeature Donald Trump wants to privatize two major mortgage companies, which could make mortgages more expensive
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliablespeed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Also of interest...in picture books for grown-upsfeature How About Never—Is Never Good for You?; The Undertaking of Lily Chen; Meanwhile, in San Francisco; The Portlandia Activity Book
-
Author of the week: Karen Russell
feature Karen Russell could use a rest.
-
The Double Life of Paul de Man by Evelyn Barish
feature Evelyn Barish “has an amazing tale to tell” about the Belgian-born intellectual who enthralled a generation of students and academic colleagues.
-
Book of the week: Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis
feature Michael Lewis's description of how high-frequency traders use lightning-fast computers to their advantage is “guaranteed to make blood boil.”
-
Also of interest...in creative rebellion
feature A Man Called Destruction; Rebel Music; American Fun; The Scarlet Sisters
-
Author of the week: Susanna Kaysen
feature For a famous memoirist, Susanna Kaysen is highly ambivalent about sharing details about her life.
-
You Must Remember This: Life and Style in Hollywood’s Golden Age by Robert Wagner
feature Robert Wagner “seems to have known anybody who was anybody in Hollywood.”
-
Book of the week: Astoria: John Jacob Astor and Thomas Jefferson’s Lost Pacific Empire by Peter Stark
feature The tale of Astoria’s rise and fall turns out to be “as exciting as anything in American history.”