John Forbes Nash (1928-2015) was an American mathematician who received the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1994 for his contributions to game theory and negotiation processes and the Abel Prize from the Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters (considered the Nobel Prize of mathematics) in 2015 for, among other things, his contributions on nonlinear partial differential equations.
Since he was little, he showed interest in mathematics and chemistry. After winning a scholarship in the George Westinghouse competition, he would enroll in chemical engineering at what is now Carnegie Mellon University. Thanks to his professor who saw his innate talent for mathematics, Nash would accept a scholarship from Princeton University for a doctorate in mathematics. His recommendation letter said only: “This man is a genius . ”
At the age of 30 he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia , an illness that would accompany him throughout his life. In his head he was looking for the secret keys to deactivate a global conspiracy that he believed he had discovered; To do this, he non-stop wrote endless and unsolvable equations everywhere with brief periods of lucidity. His family and his friends helped, little by little, to strengthen his connection with reality to the detriment of his delusions.
His theories have influenced global trade negotiations, advances in evolutionary biology, and national labor relations. The film A Beautiful Mind ( 2001) is based on his life and although with licenses and errors, Nash himself recognized that “the positive thing was that he knew how to draw attention around the world to schizophrenia.” .
John Nash died with his wife on May 23, 2015 due to a fatal traffic accident.
We leave you with his best quotes:
List of Famous quotes by John Nash
“The world needs brilliant minds willing to seek creative solutions to the challenges we face.”
“Math can be difficult, but once you master the basics, it becomes a powerful tool.”
“True greatness is not found in fame or recognition, but in the positive impact we have on the lives of others.”
“Classes dull the mind… they take away the student’s creative potential.”
“The beauty of mathematics lies in its universality, no matter what language you speak or where you are, the numbers will always be the same.”
“What distinguishes the real from the unreal is in the heart.”
“Gentlemen, I must remind you that my chances of success increase with each new attempt…”
“Success is not measured only by material achievements, but by the happiness and well-being we experience along the way.”
“No, I don’t believe in luck, but I do believe in assigning value to things.”
“I wouldn’t say there is a relationship between mathematics and schizophrenia.”
“The beauty of mathematics is in its ability to reveal hidden patterns and unexpected connections.”
“Logical thinking is essential for solving complex problems, but it is also important to leave room for intuition and inspiration.”
“I have always believed in numbers. In the equations and logic that lead to reason. But, after a lifetime of searching I ask myself, What is logic? Who decides the reason?”
“I have searched through the physical, the metaphysical, the delirious, … and started again. And I have made the most important discovery of my career, the most important discovery of my life. Only in the mysterious equations of love can any logic be found.”
“Gradually, I began to intellectually reject some of the delusional lines of thinking that had been characteristic of my orientation. This began, most clearly, with the rejection of politically oriented thinking as a useless waste of intellectual effort.”