mythealias

    The prospect of being awarded a Fields Medal had forced 
    him to make a complete break with his profession. “As
     long as I was not conspicuous, I had a choice,” Perelman 
    explained. “Either to make some ugly thing”—a fuss about 
   the math community’s lack of integrity—“or, if I didn’t do
     this kind of thing, to be treated as a pet. Now, when I 
    become a very conspicuous person, I cannot stay a pet and 
    say nothing. That is why I had to quit.” We asked 
    Perelman whether, by refusing the Fields and withdrawing 
    from his profession, he was eliminating any possibility 
    of influencing the discipline. “I am not a politician!” 
    he replied, angrily.