> Can someone please turn this into a Zachtronics style game?!

That game is called math :) Partially joking, but I do think a game version would be fun.

> Is this what pure math is about?

More or less yes for an undergrad, but when you get to research it feels different.

> I badly, direly want this

Consider checking out an abstract algebra book. Maybe Dummit and Foote or something else popular. Proofs in algebra often have a satisfying game-like quality. The more popular books will have solutions you can find online if you get stuck.

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danabramov 10 days ago | parent | next [-]

>More or less yes for an undergrad, but when you get to research it feels different.

Would you mind telling more about how it feels different in research?

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ants_everywhere 10 days ago | parent [-]

You can get into a meditative zone when you're manipulating equations using techniques you've internalized.

In research you're doing a lot more of things like reading papers, putting your thoughts into words, trying to understand something the author of the paper barely understands, feeling lost and unsure where to look next. All of that can feel good too (or it cannot depending on the person) but it's a different feeling than playing a logic game.

As one example, Euclidia is a fun meditative game. But compare the difference in feeling between doing an exercise from Euclid and trying to prove the parallel postulate. It took centuries to realize you couldn't prove it, and then there was a lot of hard work trying to figure out what geometry was like if you get rid of it.

	▲	082349872349872 10 days ago \| parent [-]
		> It took centuries to realize you couldn't Millennia, even

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RossBencina 10 days ago | parent | prev [-]

> Proofs in algebra often have a satisfying game-like quality.

Interesting. I find them banal and deeply unsatisfying.

	▲	ants_everywhere 10 days ago \| parent [-]
		That's fine. Different people prefer different subjects. But IME the mode graduate student finds algebra to be an enjoyable class because of the proofs.