Quote:The central strand of Lost in Math is an argument that (some) theoretical physicists and philosophers of science have lost the track of where science ends and philosophy begins. This is potentially damaging. This is not to say that physicists ought not value philosophy, do philosophy, or engage with philosophers. In fact, we theoretical physicists could use philosophers' help in thoroughly understanding the subtle boundary between philosophical assumptions, mathematics, and scientific reasoning at the foundations of physics. Hossenfelder argues that one mechanism by which (some) physicists' delusions developed is through the mathematical formalization of aesthetic ideals over the past several decades. Particular ideals of beauty have become entrenched and even elevated in some circles to constituting solid scientific criteria—able to justify rather than merely to guide scientific work, even in the absence of observational evidence.