In fact, if you would like to cover the distance from the Earth to the sun by folding a 0.1-millimeter piece of paper, 50 folds gets you close to the sun, but not quite, and 51 folds gets you way beyond the sun. But saying you should fold a piece of paper "50 point something times” would have sounded strange!

数学者のエドゥアルド・サエンス・デ・カベソンが、ユーモアと魅力たっぷりに、世界中の退屈した学生たちの頭を悩ます問いに答えます。その問いとは、数学は何のためにあるのかです。彼は、科学を支えている数学の美しさを紹介し、ダイヤモンドではなく、定理こそが永遠なのだと語ります。

数学は永遠に

Mathematics provides more than practical tools; its truths endure longer than the hardest diamond. A single sheet of paper folded 50 times would reach nearly from Earth to the sun, defying intuition and showing math's power to reveal reality. Theorems, once proved, remain eternally true even as the world changes. Math's rigor forms the backbone of science, quietly supporting breakthroughs from honeycombs to Olympic architecture.

Theorems Outlast Diamonds And Shape The World

Hexagons! And Other Reason to Love Math

*TED en Español podcast*