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No, you don't need to have taken classes or earned a degree in your area. What you really need is an insatiable curiosity. One of the best examples I know of this is Martin Gardner, who for over ...
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**No** , you don't need to have taken classes or earned a degree in your area. What you really need is an **insatiable curiosity**. One of the best examples I know of this is _Martin Gardner_, who for over 20 years wrote a column for Scientific American called _Mathematical Games_. He is given much credit for the popularization of recreational mathematics in the 20th century. According to wikipedia: "Ironically, Gardner had problems learning calculus and never took a mathematics course after high school." As I recall, Gardner credited his _lack of training in mathematics_ for some of the success of his column. Each month for his column, _he_ had to learn about the topic, before he could teach it to his audience.