back to ideas for this text


Single Idea 9639

[from 'Philosophy of Mathematics' by James Robert Brown, in 6. Mathematics / C. Sources of Mathematics / 7. Formalism ]

Full Idea

Are there mathematical properties which can only be discovered using a particular notation?

Gist of Idea

Does some mathematics depend entirely on notation?

Source

James Robert Brown (Philosophy of Mathematics [1999], Ch. 6)

Book Reference

Brown,James Robert: 'Philosophy of Mathematics' [Routledge 2002], p.89


A Reaction

If so, this would seem to be a serious difficulty for platonists. Brown has just been exploring the mathematical theory of knots.