January 7, 2000

The Remaking of Math

By ROBIN WILSON

Many scholars suggest a more real-world focus, but some worry about a loss of rigor

Mathematics isn't exactly known as academe's most progressive discipline when it comes to curricular reform. Students are still taught to plug in numbers and chug through a formula, and some undergraduates never learn how calculus relates to other disciplines, much less the real world.

All of that, mathematicians say, is about to change.

Under the guidance of the

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