Chikurel, Idit
Do. 14-16
Beginn: 05.11.2020
The seminar examines the philosophy of mathematical practice as well as the contribution of mathematical practice to philosophy, being a new current in the philosophy of mathematics starting the 1970s. The first part of the seminar is dedicated to this turn, known as "philosophy of mathematical practice", a turn starting with Imre Lakatos' "Proofs and Refutations" and Kenneth Manders' "The Euclidean Diagram". It explores concepts and practices such as diagrammatic reasoning, explanation, purity of methods and definitions. The second part of the seminar will examine how mathematical practices are used for philosophical purposes and their contribution to the development of concepts such as necessity and a priori knowledge. Our discussion will be based on examples taken from the history of philosophy, including Descartes' mathematical inventions developed as part of his philosophical work on invention, the role of arithmetic in debates on necessary knowledge, the transformation of geometry from a "science of figures" to a "science of space" and the contribution of the paradox of Aristotle's wheel to theories of continuity and infinity.
We will read several articles as well as selected chapters from Stewart Shapiro (2000), Thinking about Mathematics: The Philosophy of Mathematics and Paulo Mancosu (Ed.) (2008), The Philosophy of Mathematical Practice.
MA Phil 1, 2, 3
MA-TGWT Phil 4
MA-Phil 3
Nebenfach-Philosophie für Mathematik-BA
