Numbers–Magic and Mania

Abstract

Quantitative information has become the prime tool for the description of the world at large. Irrespective of a country's ideological disposition or level of development, statistics and numbers serve as ultimate sources of proof and disproof in all areas of science, technology, industry, society and everyday life. They are the dominant foundation of credibility and act as the prime channel of communication at the expense of verbal expression. The increasing use of numbers can be traced to classical Greece and has evolved continuously ever since. In today's world this is threatening to lead to quantitative overload. Although the human brain is not adept at performing complex calculations, or even understanding the significance of very large, very small or very many values simultaneously, society has become obsessed with numbers. At the same time, growing technological sophistication in electronics and analytical and measurement instrumentation frequently allows – and therefore demands – levels of detail that far exceed the degree of precision actually required. In many instances this has led to counterproductive forms of number usage which serve more to confuse than to clarify or which hide more than they reveal. At the same time, forefront indicators in mathematics and natural sciences are pointing away from numerical thinking. Finally, the way in which the unbridled attempt to quantify ourselves and our world can lead to serious misinterpretations of reality is illustrated. Ultimately, numbers are instruments of explanation, not of understanding. They should, therefore, be servants, not masters.