“There is beauty when something works and it works intuitively.”
— Jony Ive, designer
I care about design a lot. My design philosophy is “simplicity is the utmost sophistication” (“less is more”). Therefore, whenever I revise this website, I am not trying to complicate it, but rather to make it more artistically delicate and elegant. Indeed, this design philosophy applies not only to my website but to each of my creations including my poems and my teaching style. Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc., was once told by Mike Markkula that people DO judge a book by its cover. And in a sense, I believe that. Hence, I have input a lot of effort into every detail of my website facade.
In fact, many great mathematicians, such as Bernard Riemann, shared my “simplicity” design philosophy. Riemann believed in his teacher Carl Gauss’s motto “pauca sed mature,” meaning “few, but ripe.” That’s exactly what Riemann did throughout his life: he published only 15 papers (4 of which were released posthumously), but each made an incredibly significant contribution to numerous branches of mathematics including number theory, complex analysis, mathematical physics, and the foundations of geometry. As an example, the famous Riemann hypothesis (which has remained unsolved for almost three centuries) was just derived from a 9-page paper among Riemann’s 15 papers, entitled “Ueber die Anzahl der Primzahlen unter einer gegebenen Grösse” (usual English translation: “On the Number of Primes Less Than a Given Magnitude”).
You know, just like Riemann, I have a “culture” of excellence. The world has been complicated enough filled with all kinds of resources good and bad. I think being bad is worse than NOT being there. If I contribute to the world any resources, like writing calculus solutions for my students, I have a responsibility to make them the best so that they will be truly enjoyed by the rest of humanity. If I publish junk, it will waste my readers’/listeners’ time and lives, so why should it be there to prevent others from finding better resources? Again, the world has been complicated enough; if I do some work, I shall make it the best I can do. That’s my general philosophy. As an example, if I can’t teach math excellently, then I won’t teach. The world doesn’t need another miserable math professor; it needs a truly excellent math professor.
A college website is not Instagram, so I hope to keep it professional rather than let it fill with boring and untasteful details about my personal life as many professors like to do on their sites. However, I also want my website to stand out from pedestrian college sites. Besides, I don’t believe sharing one’s life can truly set their sites apart since it’s not artistically distinctive or tasteful. That’s why I post some of my poetry and math essays there. They offer visitors a brand new vision to observe and apply math in a tasteful way.
I’ve been a perfectionist since the early years of my life. I am trying to improve and perfect this website day by day, with my taste and appreciation toward art and my visitors. Just as I love my students, I love my visitors who are interested in my research, teaching, or writing, very much. Therefore, my goal is to give my visitors the best viewing experiences I can offer. For the same reason, if you think my design sucks, I invite you to complain to me at ifeng@usc.edu. (Feel free to be anonymous.) We can never fix something we don’t know; thus I greatly appreciate your feedback! I really do!
My philosophy is a lighthouse,
Guiding my way to artistic prowess.
Simplicity, the beam of light,
Illuminating my path, ever so bright.
My website, a canvas to paint,
A delicate and elegant portrait, no restraint.
Each detail, a stroke of the brush,
Creating a masterpiece, with every touch.
My creation, a garden of delight,
Math essays and poetry, shining bright.
A symphony of math and art,
A new way to experience, from the start.
Like Riemann, I am a gardener,
Planting seeds of excellence, never a bystander.
My resources, the fruits of my labor,
Ripe and few, a tasteful flavor.
Perfection, a mountain to climb,
With each step, I leave mediocrity behind.
My visitors, a precious gem,
I polish and shine, just like a diadem.
The cosmos, a vast and complex sea,
I am a ship, sailing purposefully.
My contributions, a beacon of hope,
Guiding others, helping them cope.
My design, a dance of light and shadow,
A balance of elegance and functional flow.
Your feedback, a vital instrument in my hand,
A hammer to forge, my creative band.
My philosophy, a guiding star,
Illuminating my way, near and far.
My website, a canvas to express,
My artistic soul, nothing less.
Ivan Zhanhu Feng*
March 12, 2023
Click here to listen to the poem
[All of the voices there, except for “Planting seeds of excellence,” “I polish and shine,” “The cosmos,” and the last verse of the poem, are my cloned voice generated by Play.ht.]
Click here to listen to the article
[As above, the voice is generated by Play.ht.]
First published: Oct 12, 2022
Last update: May 29, 2024