MathFiction: Forbidden Knowledge (Kathryn Cramer)

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

...
Forbidden Knowledge (1987)

Kathryn Cramer
...

Mathematical statements can sound pretty strange, practically humorous, when you don't know the technical definitions of the terms. This somewhat frightening story has such a statement as its punchline. Specifically, it all builds up to a quote from Irving Kaplansky's Fields and Rings:
We shall have no need to assign meaning to Ext itself; we shall speak only of its vanishing.
The story was published in 1987 in Rudy Rucker's collection Mathenauts, still the only place I know of to find it.

More information about this work can be found at another page on this Website.
(Note: This is just one work of mathematical fiction from the list. To see the entire list or to see more works of mathematical fiction, return to the Homepage.)

Works Similar to Forbidden Knowledge

According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:

Drode's Equations by Richard Grant
The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks
The Fermata by Nicholson Baker
The Math Code by Alex Kasman
Mozart on Morphine by Gregory Benford
Ripples in the Dirac Sea by Geoffrey A. Landis
Shell by Stephen Baxter
BLIT by David Langford
Mathenauts: Tales of Mathematical Wonder by Rudy Rucker (editor)
What Happened at Cambridge IV by David Langford

Ratings for Forbidden Knowledge:

Ratings

Have you seen/read this work of mathematical fiction? Then click here to enter your own votes on its mathematical content and literary quality or send me comments to post on this Webpage.

Mathematical Content:
1/5 (1 votes)

Literary Quality:
3/5 (1 votes)

Categories:

Genre	Science Fiction,
Motif
Topic
Medium	Short Stories,

Home All New Browse Search About

Where are the new works of mathematical fiction?: As you can see from this chronological listing, this database includes many works of mathematical fiction for each year from 1990 to 2025. Strangely, only two are listed for 2026, so far. Either less mathematical fiction is being published than in previous years or I'm just having more trouble finding it. If you know of any works of fiction that should be added to this list, especially recently published ones, please let me know. (Keep in mind that I do not include self-published works or children's fiction that just covers elementary mathematical concepts.) Thanks!

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)