Combining Texts

Ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'Process and Reality' and 'Towards a Universal Characteristic'

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3 ideas

5. Theory of Logic / A. Overview of Logic / 4. Pure Logic
'Blind thought' is reasoning without recognition of the ingredients of the reasoning [Leibniz, by Arthur,R]
     Full Idea: Leibniz invented the concept of 'blind thought' - reasoning by a manipulation of characters without being able to recognise what each character stands for.
     From: report of Gottfried Leibniz (Towards a Universal Characteristic [1677]) by Richard T.W. Arthur - Leibniz
5. Theory of Logic / G. Quantification / 2. Domain of Quantification
With 'extensive connection', boundary elements are not included in domains [Whitehead, by Varzi]
     Full Idea: In Whitehead's theory of extensive connection, no boundary elements are included in the domain of quantification. ...His conception of space contains no parts of lower dimensions, such as points or boundary elements.
     From: report of Alfred North Whitehead (Process and Reality [1929]) by Achille Varzi - Mereology 3.1
     A reaction: [Varzi says we should see B.L.Clarke 1981 for a rigorous formulation. Second half of the Idea is Varzi p.21]
5. Theory of Logic / K. Features of Logics / 5. Incompleteness
We can assign a characteristic number to every single object [Leibniz]
     Full Idea: The true principle is that we can assign to every object its determined characteristic number.
     From: Gottfried Leibniz (Towards a Universal Characteristic [1677], p.18)
     A reaction: I add this as a predecessor of Gödel numbering. It is part of Leibniz's huge plan for a Universal Characteristic, to map reality numerically, and then calculate the truths about it. Gödel seems to allow metaphysics to be done mathematically.