Is mathematics *the* universal language?

Question

If yes, is Einstein considered a genius because he was good at math?

Answer 1

Yes Mathematics is the universal lansuage and Einstein is considered a genius not because he was good at maths but because he was a great scientist. Einstein contributed more than any other scientist to the modern vision of physical reality. His special and general theories of relativity are still regarded as the most satisfactory model of the large-scale universe that we have..

Answer 2

First of all, human civilization is in its infancy, so us making a claim about what language is "universal" would be like Native Americans declaring smoke signals to be the universal language. When we've met all the aliens in the universe (if any) then we'll know what's truly the universal language.

I believe you're referring to the movie Contact when you got the idea that mathematics is the universal language. Like a previous poster said, 2+2=4 is always true so any civilization should be able to understand it. Still, if we started throwing vector calculus at a civilization that's still stuck at algebra, math wouldn't seem that universal. Also, math is very limited in what it can communicate so it's not like math is going to help us explain a peace treaty proposal to an alien civilization.

Put simply, I don't think there's any point calling anything, including math, the "universal language."

As for Einstein, he's considered smart because he came up with a radical new way to think about matter, energy, and time.

Answer 3

Yes, mathematics is considered a universal language - 2+2 is 4,
anybody can understand that, no matter what language you speak. The meaning of the symbols remains the same in every language, but they are pronounced differently

The second question is a tough one, because no one knows exactly how Einstein's mind worked.
Einstein was good at math, but a lot of people in his time were just as good, or even better. The reason he is considered a genius is because he pictured the world in a way that was totally different from anything else known at the time, which gave accurate predictions in many areas, and revolutionaized physics. He used math as tool to help do this, but his math was very messy. His math professor, Minkowsky, who helped him develop the equations, used to complain about his "slopiness"

Surprisingly, when he was kid, his teachers didn't think he'd amount to anything. He used to say himself, that it took him longer than the other kids to understand the math taught, but when he did figure it out, which was later, he was more mature in his approach.

Feynman is a different example - he was extraordinary at math from a very young age, and the most brilliant in his class, and later, whenever he walked into a room. His teachers knew he was talented, and, unlike Einstein, Feynman to go to university.

However, Einstein is regarded universally as a "better" genius than Feynman. Though I think most people would wish that had a fraction of the talent either of them had.

Answer 4

Love is considered the universal language. Einstein was a genius regardless.

Answer 5

I don't believe that anything is universal. I don't believe in meta-narratives and although I think there are basic human needs and emotions, I think we all experience them in slightly different ways and certainly express/cope with them differently.
Body language is not universal; even something like a smile can mean totally different things in different cultures, and can even be interpreted differently in your own culture. Ethnomusicologists have tried to identify rhythms and beats that occur across cultures, and they've struck lucky with a few, but that doesn't indicate that the beats connote the same meaning across cultures.

As for Einstein; he is considered a genius because he could make sense of things that most of his contemporaries could not. We are still not certain that his 'sense' or perception of time/space is correct; he was dealing with things that are potentially beyond human comprehension, but he had a good try, and his model holds up to quite a few criticisms, so we accept him as more intelligent than most.

Answer 6

Galileo said something like the nature of the world is written in the language of mathematics.
Mathematics is certainly universal and there is no disagreement on its meaning. mathematics also describes as does a language.
Therefore it is a universal language but not what we would hope to find in the best universal language because it cannot adequately describe everything.

Answer 7

No, the universal "language" would be in a smile, a laugh, a frown, a tear...

Everyone should know how another is feeling just by looking at another's face...

Answer 8

Mathematics is a more of a science than a language.

Answer 9

Many may say mathimatics are the universal language, in my opinion there are 2 universal languages:
1. math
2. music

Answer 10

Nope. Considering I don't speak it.
Body language is universal though.