I’m a mathematician, and I had similar problems in the past. Here are some things that have worked fantastically well for me.
First of all, just start talking to people in other fields at your university. Start with “nearby” fields (like theoretical physics) and progress from there. See what they’re up to; you might find opportunities for fruitful collaboration. These people need not be professors; indeed, since they’re used to being pestered by eager students trying to climb the social ladder, you might find professors unable or unwilling to give you their time unless you can convince them it’ll be to their benefit. Fortunately, talking to students can often be just as worthwhile.
Other things you can do: read first-year textbooks. In the fields that you find interesting, read more advanced textbooks. This can be highly enjoyable in its own right; I like to savour the different kinds of argumentation and notions of salience that get used in different fields. You can also attend conferences and that sort of thing.
If you’re interested in escaping the bounds of academia, of course, you should also talk to people who aren’t academics. You’ll still want to find people doing something worthwhile, of course: I find I get along best with artists, radical/activist types, social workers, etc.
One caveat in all this: approach unfamiliar beliefs and methodologies with openness and respect. Often it takes awhile to really grok why things are done in certain ways, and moreover, people tend to take offense (rightly!) at newbies who are too quick to attack what they don’t yet understand. If something seems silly or irrational to you, it may very well be; but people are on the whole more rational than the LW crowd tends to give them credit for, and so it’s just as likely that you simply aren’t familiar yet with their motivations. Ask lots of questions, but ask them with the appropriate attitude, and actually listen carefully to the answers you get.
I’m a mathematician, and I had similar problems in the past. Here are some things that have worked fantastically well for me.
First of all, just start talking to people in other fields at your university. Start with “nearby” fields (like theoretical physics) and progress from there. See what they’re up to; you might find opportunities for fruitful collaboration. These people need not be professors; indeed, since they’re used to being pestered by eager students trying to climb the social ladder, you might find professors unable or unwilling to give you their time unless you can convince them it’ll be to their benefit. Fortunately, talking to students can often be just as worthwhile.
Other things you can do: read first-year textbooks. In the fields that you find interesting, read more advanced textbooks. This can be highly enjoyable in its own right; I like to savour the different kinds of argumentation and notions of salience that get used in different fields. You can also attend conferences and that sort of thing.
If you’re interested in escaping the bounds of academia, of course, you should also talk to people who aren’t academics. You’ll still want to find people doing something worthwhile, of course: I find I get along best with artists, radical/activist types, social workers, etc.
One caveat in all this: approach unfamiliar beliefs and methodologies with openness and respect. Often it takes awhile to really grok why things are done in certain ways, and moreover, people tend to take offense (rightly!) at newbies who are too quick to attack what they don’t yet understand. If something seems silly or irrational to you, it may very well be; but people are on the whole more rational than the LW crowd tends to give them credit for, and so it’s just as likely that you simply aren’t familiar yet with their motivations. Ask lots of questions, but ask them with the appropriate attitude, and actually listen carefully to the answers you get.
With respect to reading textbooks: I have been constantly checking this post to update my amazon wishlist.