I think in Japan, people are more aware. I once was in Japan and eating alone. A Japanese couple came and wanted to practice their English. They asked me what I did. I said I was a mathematician but could not get the idea across until I said: “Like Hironaka”. Wow! It’s as though in America I’d said “Like Babe Ruth”, or Michael Jordan, or Tiger Woods. Perhaps Hironaka’s name is ... the only one known, but in America I don’t think any mathematician’s name would get any response.

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I think in Japan, people are more aware. I once was in Japan and eating alone. A Japanese couple came and wanted to practice their English. They asked me what I did. I said I was a mathematician but could not get the idea across until I said: “Like Hironaka”. Wow! It’s as though in America I’d said “Like Babe Ruth”, or Michael Jordan, or Tiger Woods. Perhaps Hironaka’s name is ... the only one known, but in America I don’t think any mathematician’s name would get any response." in the context of "John Tate, as quoted by Martin Raussen and Christian Skau: (March 2011), "Interview with Abel Laureate John Tate", Notices of the AMS 58 no: 3, pages: 444–452 (quote from p. 452)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.