Philosophy of Mathematics

Author(s)

Bibliographic Information

Philosophy of Mathematics

edited by Andrew D. Irvine

(Handbook of the philosophy of science / general editors, Dov M. Gabbay, Paul Thagard, and John Woods)

North-Holland, 2009

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Note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

One of the most striking features of mathematics is the fact that we are much more certain about the mathematical knowledge we have than about what mathematical knowledge is knowledge of. Are numbers, sets, functions and groups physical entities of some kind? Are they objectively existing objects in some non-physical, mathematical realm? Are they ideas that are present only in the mind? Or do mathematical truths not involve referents of any kind? It is these kinds of questions that have encouraged philosophers and mathematicians alike to focus their attention on issues in the philosophy of mathematics. Over the centuries a number of reasonably well-defined positions about the nature of mathematics have been developed and it is these positions (both historical and current) that are surveyed in the current volume. Traditional theories (Platonism, Aristotelianism, Kantianism), as well as dominant modern theories (logicism, formalism, constructivism, fictionalism, etc.), are all analyzed and evaluated. Leading-edge research in related fields (set theory, computability theory, probability theory, paraconsistency) is also discussed. The result is a handbook that not only provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments but that also serves as an indispensable resource for anyone wanting to learn about current developments in the philosophy of mathematics.

Table of Contents

1. The Foundations of Mathematics (W.D. Hart) 2. Realism (Mark Balaguer) 3. Aristotelian Realism (James Franklin) 4. Empiricism (David Bostock) 5. Kantianism (Mary Tiles) 6. Logism (Jaakko Hintikka) 7. Formalism (Peter Simons) 8. Constructivism (David McCarty) 9. Fictionalism (Daniel Bonevac) 10. Structuralism (Fraser MacBride) 11. Set Theory from Cantor to Cohen (Akihiro Kanamori) 12. Alternative Set Theories (Peter Apostoli, Roland Hinnion, Akira Kanda & Thierry Libert) 13. Philosophies of Probability (Jon Williamson) 14. Computability (Wilfried Sieg) 15. Inconsistent Mathematics (Chris Mortensen) 16. Mathematics and the World (Mark Colyvan)

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Details

  • NCID
    BA90999280
  • ISBN
    • 9780444515551
  • Country Code
    ne
  • Title Language Code
    eng
  • Text Language Code
    eng
  • Place of Publication
    Amsterdam ; Tokyo
  • Pages/Volumes
    xvi, 717 p.
  • Size
    25 cm
  • Classification
  • Parent Bibliography ID
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