Jason Bardi - The Great Math War: How Three Brilliant Minds Fought for the Foundations of Mathematics
From A Book with Legs by Smead Capital Management
April 6, 2026 · 1h 20m · Season 4 · Episode 437
About this episode
Cole Smead interviews Jason Socrates Bardi about the intellectual battle in mathematics between David Hilbert and L.E.J. Brouwer.
What happens when brilliant minds disagree not just on answers, but on the very rules of how answers can be found? These questions are addressed in the latest episode of A Book with Legs, where Smead Capital Management CEO and Portfolio Manager Cole Smead is joined by journalist and author Jason Socrates Bardi to discuss his book, "The Great Math War: How Three Brilliant Minds Fought for the Foundations of Mathematics." Cole and Jason trace the historical and intellectual battle between mathematical titans David Hilbert, who saw mathematics as a game with strict rules, and L.E.J. Brouwer, whose concept of intuitionism rejected many classical methods. They also discuss how these mental frameworks can be considered when investing and interpreting data. Sign up to be notified about new A Book with Legs episodes: https://hubs.ly/Q0452Lh70
People in this episode
Host: Cole Smead
Guest: Jason Socrates Bardi
Topics covered
- mathematics
- investing
- intellectual debate
- historical figures
- data interpretation
Keywords
- mathematics
- Hilbert
- Brouwer
- investing
- data
- intellectual debate
- foundations of mathematics
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: The Great Math War: How Three Brilliant Minds Fought for the Foundations of Mathematics
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