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yet struggle to convince "artsy" persons that what I do is creative.

As another mathematician I've almost found the exact opposite. As soon as I mention math to an arts person they instantly start babbling about fractals and chaos and Fibonacci and all kinds of other vague pop-culture terms they've heard of but don't really understand. Artsy types almost seem to find math much more artistic than I do.

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They look at fractals and spirals and enjoy seeing the pretty pictures with all the symmetry and colors. However when an explanation of how the series is generated and how it can vary is presented, interest is feigned and the core concepts still elude them. It's almost as if they don't like getting their hands dirty in a different medium.

Come on, that's a gross generalization.

There is a different between artsy and creative. Artsy (roughly) refers to things that appeal to the senses. Creative is a much more general notion of creating. In math, you defiantly create things. And you arguably create beautiful thing. But the beauty is not in the senses, it is in the mind. The senses are involved only as a form of communication.

It's the same kind of beauty you'd find in a well-stated argument.

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