The best set of New Year’s Resolutions
GH Hardy, who was Ramanujan’s mentor, apparently sent the following list of resolutions to a friend via postcard:
Prove the Riemann hypothesis
Make 211 not out in the fourth innings of the last Test Match at the Oval
Find an argument for the nonexistence of God which shall convince the general public
Be the first man at the top of Mount Everest
Be proclaimed the first president of the U. S. S. R. of Great Britain and Germany
Murder Mussolini
And ordinary human beings like me (and maybe you? Unless you’re the next GH Hardy) write something like go to the gym every day
I don’t think Hardy managed to achieve any of the above before he died, but atleast he failed at something big. Meanwhile, I couldn’t keep up with my resolution to drink 8 glasses of water a day (I drank 10 today)