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Single Idea 10880

[filed under theme 6. Mathematics / A. Nature of Mathematics / 1. Mathematics ]

Full Idea

Three views of mathematics: 'pure' mathematics, where it doesn't matter if it could ever have any application; 'real' mathematics, where every concept must be physically grounded; and 'applied' mathematics, using the non-real if the results are real.

Gist of Idea

Mathematics can be 'pure' (unapplied), 'real' (physically grounded); or 'applied' (just applicable)

Source

Brian Clegg (Infinity: Quest to Think the Unthinkable [2003], Ch.17)

Book Ref

Clegg,Brian: 'Infinity' [Robinson 2003], p.218

A Reaction

Very helpful. No one can deny the activities of 'pure' mathematics, but I think it is undeniable that the origins of the subject are 'real' (rather than platonic). We do economics by pretending there are concepts like the 'average family'.

The 20 ideas from 'Infinity: Quest to Think the Unthinkable'

10853 Either lack of zero made early mathematics geometrical, or the geometrical approach made zero meaningless [Clegg]
10854 Transcendental numbers can't be fitted to finite equations [Clegg]
10858 By adding an axis of imaginary numbers, we get the useful 'number plane' instead of number line [Clegg]
10860 An ordinal number is defined by the set that comes before it [Clegg]
10861 Beyond infinity cardinals and ordinals can come apart [Clegg]
10859 A set is 'well-ordered' if every subset has a first element [Clegg]
10857 Set theory made a closer study of infinity possible [Clegg]
10864 Any set can always generate a larger set - its powerset, of subsets [Clegg]
10862 The 'continuum hypothesis' says aleph-one is the cardinality of the reals [Clegg]
10866 Cantor's account of infinities has the shaky foundation of irrational numbers [Clegg]
10869 The Continuum Hypothesis is independent of the axioms of set theory [Clegg]
10872 Extensionality: Two sets are equal if and only if they have the same elements [Clegg]
10876 Unions: There is a set of all the elements which belong to at least one set in a collection [Clegg]
10875 Pairing: For any two sets there exists a set to which they both belong [Clegg]
10878 Infinity: There exists a set of the empty set and the successor of each element [Clegg]
10877 Powers: All the subsets of a given set form their own new powerset [Clegg]
10879 Choice: For every set a mechanism will choose one member of any non-empty subset [Clegg]
10871 Axiom of Existence: there exists at least one set [Clegg]
10874 Specification: a condition applied to a set will always produce a new set [Clegg]
10880 Mathematics can be 'pure' (unapplied), 'real' (physically grounded); or 'applied' (just applicable) [Clegg]