5

I have come up with a new mathematical method that has applications in a field outside mathematics. I have described the mathematics of it, and proved relevant theorems to show how it works. The sole importance of this method is its applications to field X.

If I go to mathematicians, they are saying that the theorems are right, but the mathematics of it is nothing unusual but expected. They don't readily know much about X, and have no inclination to know. So it’s difficult to impress a math journal editor for a publication acceptance. So the mathematicians are advising to go to experts of field X.

On the other hand, If I go to experts of X, they are reluctant to comment, as they don't readily understand the relevant math (unless they take some time and refer to a few books). Moreover the concept is a bit counter-intuitive to the latest beliefs in field X.

I need better workstations and some time and funding to apply and solve harder problems in field X, for which I need some support and funding, which is possible only if someone buys my idea and sponsor, as a form of startup. My strategy is to first publish this mathematical method, in a math journal, so that it gets some authenticity and help me get some serious attention from experts of field X for providing labs/infrastructure or attract venture capitalists for a startup.

I appreciate some suggestions whether my strategy is good idea. If so, what are type of math journals can I target for this purpose. I don’t expect to go to mathematicians and say that I have done something incredible, but I just want to garner enough interest to get published in a decent journal, so that it will be easy for me to gather attention from community of field X.

Note that I am not asking for a specific journal, but types of journals, and even if it makes moral/practical sense to publish at all, and if so under what philosophy?

Improve this question
10
  • 4
    On the other hand, If I go to experts of X, they are reluctant to comment, as they don't readily understand the relevant math — Of course not! it's your job to explain it to them.
    – JeffE
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 9:14
  • 6
    JeffE's comment means that if you want to publish in a journal of field X, you need to write the paper in a way that people in that field can understand it. This is an integral part of being an applied mathematician.
    – David Ketcheson
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 11:07
  • 5
    As David correctly inferred, I mean that one of your jobs as a researcher is to communicate your ideas to your intended audience in your writing. In this case, that means explaining the necessary math to your non-mathematician audience. Even in pure mathematics, brevity for its own sake is not a virtue; the correct target is clarity. Also: If you don't want to make your document public, you don't want to publish it, which means your question is moot. The word "publish" literally means "make public"!
    – JeffE
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 15:09
  • 6
    _ I am comfortable publishing all the math theorems but not beyond that_ — Then you should get comfortable with your results being ignored, if you can get them published at all. If you want any traction in field X, you must write for field X, using the language and conventions of field X. Field X will not know or care about the "legitimacy" of your results in field Y. And mathematicians are telling you that X≠mathematics.
    – JeffE
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 17:42
  • 4
    Your questions give the impression that you are rushing headlong into academic publishing and patenting while having little prior experience with it and overestimating the relevance of your work. Even if this is exaggerating the situation, I would strongly suggest that you find some academic mentor with whom you can share all the details of your work and who can at least remotely judge the quality of your work and give you recommendations based on that (which random people on the Internet cannot). At the very least, a mentor may help you to avoid making the aforementioned impression.
    – Wrzlprmft ♦
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 20:05

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
14

I'm an applied mathematician and I have written some papers with a focus similar to what you describe:

  • They don't include fundamentally new mathematics
  • They achieve new/faster/better results in some application, by applying mathematical techniques that are not known in the application field

This kind of work should usually be published in a journal of the application area, not a mathematics journal. The application specialists are the ones who need to learn about what you've done, so they can use it. You need to write your manuscript in a way that is accessible and convincing to application specialists. This probably means not focusing on theorems and proofs, but on results. It may require changing the vocabulary and notation you use. It is often not easy, and you will need to spend time reading the literature of the application field. It can be very helpful to find someone in that field you can talk to, or even get as a co-author.

Improve this answer
3
  • I dont want to put all the application and implementation and technology details in public. I had written only math theorems which are not patentable on its own.
    – user102868
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 12:11
  • 6
    Don't worry about people stealing an idea. If it's original, you will have to ram it down their throats.
    – David Ketcheson
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 17:46
  • "If it's original, you will have to ram it down their throats."...cannot agree more with this!
    – user102868
    Commented Mar 19, 2019 at 15:08
6

My strategy is to first publish this mathematical method of function fitting, in a math journal, so that it gets some authenticity and help me get some serious attention from [anonymized topic] experts for providing labs/infrastructure or attract venture capitalists for a startup.

You have contradicting goals:

  • If you want to sell some service or software based on your idea, then you shouldn't publish it. Once published, your method is available to everyone so you don't have exclusivity anymore. Instead you might want to license it, but for this you probably want to setup a company first and get legal advice from a professional.
  • Otherwise there's a wide range of [anonymized topic] journals and conferences where you can submit. You should be able to justify your method, typically by comparing it to state of the art methods and demonstrating that it outperforms them or overcomes some problems they have. It's more convincing if you can demonstrate its usefulness with some real application, but if you have solid arguments about its potential applications then demonstrating the theory might be accepted as a contribution.

In both cases the main question is not about high dimension or not, it's about which kind of problem it can solve better than state of the art methods.

Improve this answer
6
  • One can only patent an algorithm when its tied to a real world application and the patent is valid for that application only. For example one cannot patent an SVM on its own, as its just an abstract algorithm. So my idea is to have startup and apply this concept on as many real world applications and patent each one of them. To get funds from VC/angel, you have to let the cat out of the bag. Otherwise its difficult to garner funds.
    – user102868
    Commented Jan 13, 2019 at 19:52
  • It makes sense only if you go to a funding source with a published article, than go with a piece of paper. Am I correct?
    – user102868
    Commented Jan 13, 2019 at 19:56
  • 1
    @user102868 Afaik once you publish anyone could submit patents for applications of your method. If you think your idea is commercially viable, you should definitely seek professional legal advice before doing anything else imho.
    – Erwan
    Commented Jan 13, 2019 at 20:32
  • I suggest all posters of comments and answers to not mention ML, and delete/edit all references to ML, for preserving anonimity. Thanks.
    – user102868
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 5:22
  • 2
    I don't mind but I'm not sure you are allowed to. AcademiaSE is a QA sharing site, deleting questions is discouraged. Imho you shouldn't worry too much about mentioning the topic, as it's broad enough to protect your anonymity.
    – Erwan
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 11:03
0

You want to build a startup from your idea, having first published the idea. Although that is possible, you will not be able to patent the idea, which may limit the startup.

Improve this answer
2
  • I dont want to put all the application and implementation and technology details in public. I had written only math theorems which are not patentable on its own.
    – user102868
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 12:18
  • @user102868 You're missing my point: If you publish, then you reduce your options to patent.
    – user2768
    Commented Jan 14, 2019 at 13:02

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .