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In the broad light of day mathematicians check their equations and proofs,
leaving no stone unturned in their search for rigor.
But at night, under the full moon, they dream.
They float among the stars and wonder at the miracle of the heavens.
They are inspired.
Without dreams there is no art, no mathematics, no life.

— Michael Atiyah

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Source, in full

"Dreams" from "Sir Michael Atiyah - From Algebraic Geometry to Physics - a Personal Perspective [2010]" 1:00:41, a YouTube video (Jun 15, 2018) from the Gaduate Mathematics channel. / See also: 1) Jean-François Dars, Annick Lesne, Anne Papillault Les Déchiffreurs: Voyage en Mathématiques (2008) 2) Jean-François Dars, Annick Lesne, Anne Papillault, The Unravelers: Mathematical Snapshots (2008) the English translation.

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Without dreams there is no art, no mathematics, no life.

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Michael Atiyah (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.