symbol pusher

Definitions

Someone who engages in symbol pushing; someone solving mathematical problems by manipulating symbols (as in algebra) rather than through visual or intuitive understanding.

derogatory

Examples

“That is to say⟳, in both cases we have⟳ in mind⟳ an intended model⟳ or structure⟳ for our theory. We are not in the position of mere "symbol pushers."”

“[…] it is clear that the symbol pusher does not understand⟳ Chinese at all; he is only following meaningless instructions. Because computer models, particularly of the symbolic variety, are merely manipulating symbols, and hence understand⟳ nothing about what they are doing, they are poor models.”

“While known today as a theoretician, Einstein was not just a symbol pusher; the physics of D appears in much detail in his papers on Brownian motion.”

CEFR level