What would you talk to John Nash about?

ottle

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ottle
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Through a series of unusual coincidences, I will have the opportunity to meet John Nash next Friday (Oct 12). My father and I are having lunch with him.

So, fellow forumites - HELP!

What questions, topics, witty repartee would you share when having lunch with a Nobel prize winner? Particularly if you're a girl who has trouble figuring out the tip for a check in her head? :)

I eagerly await your responses... :)

And I guess we should rent A Beautiful Mind...
 
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Ask anything except whatever becomingagodo suggests...
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I suggest you don't ask what I say. Now he has to ask my question.

I don't really like John Nash anyway. The Beautiful Mind was a stupid movie. The two clips where most annoying things from the movie, I don't know if their false. The end speech was false.

Dumbing down mathematics is bad, espically so non mathematics can watch it.
 
becomingagodo said:
I suggest you don't ask what I say. Now he has to ask my question.

I don't really like John Nash anyway. The Beautiful Mind was a stupid movie. The two clips where most annoying things from the movie, I don't know if their false. The end speech was false.
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Is your dislike for him based on something other than the movie?

How close to the truth was the movie ? I haven't seen it yet but I hear that there were some inaccuracies.

I know that he doesn't look anything like Russell Crowe :) More like Peter O'Toole. But that's not really the point :)
 
Is your dislike for him based on something other than the movie?
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No
How close to the truth was the movie ? I haven't seen it yet but I hear that there were some inaccuracies.
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If you mean some as the whole movie was inaccurate. I agree with you. The movie blurred truth and fiction too much. A good example is the whole hallucination thing, John Nash only had auditory hallucination not visual. That basically destroys the whole movie, and how he recognized he was insane is questionable.

The film gave me the belife that top mathematician hallucinate or numbers shine up. This isn't the case. It basically glorifies the myth of a Eureka moment, however this rarely happens in mathematics. Saying that the scene of John Nash being a teacher was proberly true.

I know that he doesn't look anything like Russell Crowe More like Peter O'Toole. But that's not really the point
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I am not going on looks.
 
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I like Nash, the book, and the movie.

I don't know what I would talk about, given the opportunity. I would certainly take his lead in conversation.
 
Synesthesia is a real condition though. Is it inaccurate to say John Nash has this? (I'd say suffers, but I can't see were suffering would be involved with this condition).
 
I don't know what I would talk about,
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Inabillity to prove the Riemann hypothesis. You both could talk about that, as both of you tried to prove it and failed.
Synesthesia is a real condition though. Is it inaccurate to say John Nash has this?
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Ottle can ask John Nash this.
 
John Nash is schizophrenic. I wouldn't spend much time asking about the movie. If you aren't good with math just like me. I'd focus the discussion on mental illness but that's a personal issue of mine. A simplistic discussion of game theory would be a better choice.

You don't have to be witty, just use it as an opportunity to learn something. This isn't a date. :p
 
I would ask him about this quote from his autobiography.:
So at the present time I seem to be thinking rationally again in the style that is characteristic of scientists. However this is not entirely a matter of joy as if someone returned from physical disability to good physical health. One aspect of this is that rationality of thought imposes a limit on a person's concept of his relation to the cosmos
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Is he saying that it's fun to be nuts?
 
becomingagodo said:
It is even worse. If you do badly, act dumb or nervous then you let all of the randi forum down. You better be scared Ottle, everyone is depending on you.
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And think of me. What will become of me if my wife completely asses up a conversation with him? :)
 
Solus said:
John Nash is schizophrenic. I wouldn't spend much time asking about the movie. If you aren't good with math just like me. I'd focus the discussion on mental illness but that's a personal issue of mine. A simplistic discussion of game theory would be a better choice.

You don't have to be witty, just use it as an opportunity to learn something. This isn't a date. :p
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Oh absolutely :) I don't intend to try to take over the conversation in any way but I would like to be able to ask good questions and speak vaguely knowledgeably.

I don't plan on talking about the movie. I'm sure he gets that ALL THE TIME.

As for his schizophrenia, that seems sort of personal.

A friend of mine who is a mathematician polled some of her mathematician friends and suggested game theory as well, particularly in relation to current computer technology.

Anyway, I plan to let him lead the conversation for the most part, of course :)
 
Perhaps you could ask him something completely unconnected to maths, mental illness etc. There's the old favourites of sport and politics. Or you could get completely *****faced and ask him to bet you can't eat an aftereight off by placing it on your forehead and not using your hands.
 
"Dr. Nash, about what would you prefer to be remembered?" Follow up: "How does this relate to what others view as your greatest personal achievements?"
 
"What are you working on right now?"

"What books are you reading?" "What books should I read?"

"Can you teach me how to calculate tips in my head?"

I think I'd avoid "A Beautiful Mind", as it may bias you towards subjects he's heard a million times before. But if you do decide to consume it, I'd go with the book, not the movie.

Linda
 
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