Introduction To Mathematical Philosophy

In the words of Bertrand Russell, "Because language is misleading, as well as because it is diffuse and inexact when applied to logic (for which it was never intended), logical symbolism is absolutely necessary to any exact or thorough treatment of mathematical philosophy." That assertion underlies this book, a seminal work in the field for more than 70 years. In it, Russell offers a nontechnical, undogmatic account of his philosophical criticism as it relates to arithmetic and logic. Rather than an exhaustive treatment, however, the influential philosopher and mathematician focuses on certain issues of mathematical logic that, to his mind, invalidated much traditional and contemporary philosophy. In dealing with such topics as number, order, relations, limits and continuity, propositional functions, descriptions, and classes, Russell writes in a clear, accessible manner, requiring neither a knowledge of mathematics nor an aptitude for mathematical symbolism. The result is a thought-provoking excursion into the fascinating realm where mathematics and philosophy meet — a philosophical classic that will be welcomed by any thinking person interested in this crucial area of modern thought.

A fascinating journey through intriguing mathematical and philosophical territory - a lively introduction to this contemporary topic.

Justice in War-time, first published in 1916, is a collection of Bertrand Russell's essays on war. He claims that humans have an instinct toward war, but that this instinct needs to be sufficiently roused in order to spark conflict. He analyzes British foreign policy during the ten years before the First World War in an effort to discover how England may have contributed to the problem. The essays included in this volume are: . "An Appeal to the Intellectuals of Europe" . "The Ethics of War" . "War and Non-Resistance" . "Why Nations Love War" . "The Future of Anglo-German Rivalry" . "Is Permanent Peace Possible?" . "The Danger to Civilization" . "The Entente Policy, 1904-1915. A Reply to Professor Gilbert Murray" British philosopher and mathematician BERTRAND ARTHUR WILLIAM RUSSELL (1872-1970) won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950. Among his many works are Why I Am Not a Christian (1927), Power: A New Social Analysis (1938), and My Philosophical Development (1959).

The Principia Mathematica has long been recognised as one of the intellectual landmarks of the century.

Thinking about Mathematics covers the range of philosophical issues and positions concerning mathematics. The text describes the questions about mathematics that motivated philosophers throughout history and covers historical figures such as Plato, Aristotle, Kant, and Mill. It also presents the major positions and arguments concerning mathematics throughout the twentieth century, bringing the reader up to the present positions and battle lines.

Bertrand Russell is the most important philosopher of mathematics of the twentieth century. The author of The Principles of Mathematicsand, with Alfred Whitehead, the massive Principia Mathematica, Russell brought together his skills as a gifted communicator to provide a classic introduction to the philosophy of mathematics. Introduction to Mathematical Philosophysets out in a lucid and non-technical way the main ideas of Principia Mathematica. It is as inspiring and useful to the beginner now as it was when it was first published in 1919.

A sophisticated, original introduction to the philosophy of mathematics from one of its leading thinkers Mathematics is a model of precision and objectivity, but it appears distinct from the empirical sciences because it seems to deliver nonexperiential knowledge of a nonphysical reality of numbers, sets, and functions. How can these two aspects of mathematics be reconciled? This concise book provides a systematic, accessible introduction to the field that is trying to answer that question: the philosophy of mathematics. Øystein Linnebo, one of the world's leading scholars on the subject, introduces all of the classical approaches to the field as well as more specialized issues, including mathematical intuition, potential infinity, and the search for new mathematical axioms. Sophisticated but clear and approachable, this is an essential book for all students and teachers of philosophy and of mathematics.