"Before the introduction of the Arabic notation, multiplication was difficult, and the division even of integers called into play the highest mathematical faculties. Probably nothing in the modern world could have more astonished a Greek mathematician than to learn that, under the influence of compulsory education, the whole population of Western Europe [...] could perform the operation of division for the largest numbers." – Alfred North Whitehead (1861–1947) #quote #mathematics #math #maths