• Badabinski@kbin.earth
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    51
    ·
    2 days ago

    Also from the article:

    The writer Brett Forrest briefly interacted with Perelman in 2012. A reporter who had called him was told: “You are disturbing me. I am picking mushrooms.”

    I enjoy this man’s focus and determination. I feel like the world probably missed out on good things when he left academia, but I can’t blame the dude when I saw why he refused a million dollars for solving the Poincaré Conjecture. He seems like a person with very strong principles.

    • Beacon@fedia.io
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      11
      ·
      2 days ago

      A million dollars buys a lot of food and shelter which gives you more time to do mushroom picking. And the process of accepting the prize probably wouldn’t have taken more than a couple of days

      • Badabinski@kbin.earth
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        39
        ·
        2 days ago

        The article says that he refused the prize because he felt that he hadn’t earned it. He felt that the prize should be awarded to Richard Hamilton who developed the theory Perelman used to fully solve the Poincaré Conjecture. I’m not saying it was the wisest or easiest solution. I was only trying to express my opinion that I find his adherence to his strong principles admirable.

        I’m absolutely not advocating for anyone to turn down a million dollars. For anyone in a position where they can just, like, get a million bucks, take that shit and live a happier life!

      • zerofk@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        20 hours ago

        With a million dollars you can buy mushrooms, making picking them feel pointless.