>you will never be a professor at a top 10 institution Why

Your fault for choosing a field that is filled with literal autists.

>>8448615
>implying group theory is harder than calc 3
kek

>>8448615
People that have those coveted positions wanted them far earlier than since you started browsing /sci/ anon.

>>8448615
>Why is it that every successful academic learned fucking group theory and shit before they entered high school?
Family, money, and connections.

>>8448615
>Why is it that every successful academic learned fucking group theory

god, fucking this

WHEN THE FUCK DO I GET TO LEARN THIS SHIT EVERYBODY SEEMS TO KNOW IT BUT I'VE NEVER SEEN IT FUCKING ONCE WHAT FUCKING CLASS AM I SUPPOSED TO TAKE

>>8448782
abstract algebra

it's usually a third or fourth year subject

>>8448615
Don't try to compete, just go at your own pace anon. If you try to compete you will want to blow your brains out, trust me, these people are not human.

>>8448782
The people who know this stuff have learned about it themselves, or they had really good parents/mentors growing up. Basically, if you spent your childhood playing video games and shit, you're fucked.

>>8448830
Yeah but the elementary definitions and theorems are trivial. A primary school kid who understands addition could easily generalize and learn group theory from a book that does not assume anything from the reader. Not like those fucking books who immediately bring up complex numbers and higher geometry. Wtf

Heck, at my uni they give us a short introduction to all the algebraic structures and the elementary theorem just to help those who didn't learn this in primary school because good luck proving anything without knowledge of abstract algebra.

>Prove that the quaternions are a non commutative field

You either prove this and then use this fact as a handie to prove harder theorems easily, or you get fucked in the ass and have to bruteforce your entire test because you don't even know what algebraic structure your set forms so you are metaphorically throwing darts with your eyes blindfolded.

File: tao_terence_download_3.jpg (1MB, 3000x2040px) Image search: [Google]

1MB, 3000x2040px

>you will never get the kind of pussy terry tao gets

>>8449819
you mean the anime pillow beta nerd ?

>>8449819
i'm not going to say that math won't get you pussy, since i've pulled a girl by talking about math to her, but i'm going to tell you that there are many ways that work and many of them aren't really as difficult as winning a fields medal