Govind Menon, Erik Ellentuck Fellow in the Institute for Advanced Study's School of Mathematics (2025–26), introduces the Mathematical Folklore Project, an initiative to reconnect with centuries of mathematical culture. He reflects on the exhilaration of contact with the past—and the discipline of letting ideas shine through.
Institute Instances is a collection of 1–2 minute video snapshots of scholars, administrators, and visitors to the Institute for Advanced Study answering a question (or two) about their work at IAS. Viewed individually, these clips allow audiences to get to know the people who are, in the words of founding IAS Director Abraham Flexner, "pushing beyond the present limits of human knowledge" through advancements in science and the humanities. Taken together, these "instances" of Institute life are designed to show how everyone can play a role in actualizing discovery, and to celebrate a community devoted to excellence in scholarship.