Alex Bellos

“Mathematicians have, according to Wright, been "unreasonably successful" in finding applications to apparently useless theorems, and often years after the theorems were first discovered.”
― Alex Bellos, Here's Looking at Euclid: A Surprising Excursion Through the Astonishing World of Math

“Numbers express quantities. In the submissions to my online survey, however, respondents frequently attributed qualities to them. Noticeably, colors. The number that was most commonly described as having its own color was four (52 votes), which most respondents (17) said was blue. Seven was next (28 votes), which most respondents (9) said was green, and in third place came five (27 votes), which most respondents (9) said was red. Seeing colors in numbers is a manifestation of synesthesia, a condition in which certain concepts can trigger incongruous responses, and which is thought to be the result of atypical connections being made between parts of the brain.

In the survey, numbers were also labeled “warm,” “crisp,” “chagrined,” “peaceful,” “overconfident,” “juicy,” “quiet” and “raw.” Taken individually, the descriptions are absurd, yet together they paint a surprisingly coherent picture of number personalities. Below is a list of the numbers from one to thirteen, together with words used to describe them taken from the survey responses.

One Independent, strong, honest, brave, straightforward, pioneering, lonely.
Two Cautious, wise, pretty, fragile, open, sympathetic, quiet, clean, flexible.
Three Dynamic, warm, friendly, extrovert, opulent, soft, relaxed, pretentious.
Four Laid-back, rogue, solid, reliable, versatile, down-to-earth, personable.
Five Balanced, central, cute, fat, dominant but not too much so, happy.
Six Upbeat, sexy, supple, soft, strong, brave, genuine, courageous, humble.
Seven Magical, unalterable, intelligent, awkward, overconfident, masculine.
Eight Soft, feminine, kind, sensible, fat, solid, sensual, huggable, capable.
Nine Quiet, unobtrusive, deadly, genderless, professional, soft, forgiving.
Ten Practical, logical, tidy, reassuring, honest, sturdy, innocent, sober.
Eleven Duplicitous, onomatopoeic, noble, wise, homey, bold, sturdy, sleek.
Twelve Malleable, heroic, imperial, oaken, easygoing, nonconfrontational.
Thirteen Gawky, transitional, creative, honest, enigmatic, unliked, dark horse.

You don’t need to be a Hollywood screenwriter to spot that Mr. One would make a great romantic hero, and Miss Two a classic leading lady. The list is nonsensical, yet it makes sense. The association of one with male characteristics, and two with female ones, also remains deeply ingrained.”
― Alex Bellos, The Grapes of Math: How Life Reflects Numbers and Numbers Reflect Life