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  Key Questions: Public Support of Mathematics

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Mathematics is Important and Adds Real Value

Mathematics is the language of technology. It is used to formulate, interpret, and solve problems in fields as diverse as engineering, economics, communication, seismology, and ecology. It is the bedrock for the computer revolution. Mathematics provides us with powerful theoretical and computational techniques to advance our understanding of the modern world and societal problems and to develop and manage the technology industries that are the backbone of our economy.

Mathematics is a living discipline. Some traditional subjects in pure mathematics have been studied for hundreds of years; other topics, developed during the last few decades from the study of industrial issues, form a body of applied mathematics closely tied to the understanding of practical problems and basic phenomena. There is remarkable synergy between these seemingly disparate fields of study; the abstract nature of mathematics supports important applications in an ever-growing number of areas.

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Excerpt from Leon H. Seitelman, LSeitelman@aol.com, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft "A New Paradigm for Mathematics: Publicity or Perish," Notices of the AMS, Oct. 1996, p. 1157.