Graham Greene described G. H. Hardy’s 1940 book, A Mathematician’s Apology, as the best account of what it is like to be a creative artist. Hardy had many friends, wide-ranging interests that included the game of cricket, and empathy for the less well-off. But it was his creative work in pure mathematics that gave Hardy “the one great permanent happiness of my life.” “Mathematics,” writes C. P. Snow, “was his [Hardy’s] justification.” It gave meaning to his life.Fast forward to October 2026, whe