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10632 | The real numbers may be introduced by abstraction as ratios of quantities |
Full Idea: The real numbers may be introduced by abstraction as ratios of quantities. ..They are not defined by Dedekind cuts; rather, the cuts constitute a domain with the properties that are a necessary precondition. | |||
From: report of Bob Hale (Reals by Abstraction [1998]) by B Hale / C Wright - Intro to 'The Reason's Proper Study' 3.3 | |||
A reaction: This is Hale's neo-logicist attempt to derive the real numbers from Hume's Principle. |