Math profs then vs now: from "I'll inspire everyone to love math" to "I didn't ask for anyone else to do math"

seanmcdonaldxyz · x · 2026-10-11

A two-frame joke about how AI upended academia's self-image:

• 2020: Math professors see their life's work as inspiring everyone to love math and teaching them.
• 2026: "I didn't ask for anyone else to do math" — pushing back on outsiders (and AI) doing math themselves.

The punchline lands on the irony that the very people meant to spread knowledge now resent AI lowering the barrier for everyone to "do math."

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