Ernst Mach (1838-1916) was a seminal philosopher-scientist and a
deserving member of the canon of major twentieth-century thinkers.
Yet, despite a healthy resurgence in Mach studies, he is still widely
thought to represent a simplistic positivist, even sensationalist,
position that does not at all reflect the depth of Mach's interests
and subtlety as a philosopher. By exploring Mach's views on science as
well as philosophy, this book attempts to wrest him free from his
customary association with logical positivism and to reinterpret him
on his own terms as a natural philosopher and naturalist about human
knowledge. Mach's development and his influences from 19th century
German philosophy and science are probed in great conceptual and
historical detail, and attention is paid to his unpublished Nachlaß
as well as to the affinities between Mach's thought and that of other
major philosopher-scientists such as Einstein, Bertrand Russell,
William James, Helmholtz, Riemann, Herbart and Kant. In particular,
the book strives to set forth the true nature of Mach's
sensation-elements, the motivations for his critique of the concepts
of space and time in physics, and the real meaning of his famous
critique of metaphysics. The author's work has appeared in Synthese,
Kant-Studien, Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics and
the Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, but here these
inquiries are gathered into a unified historico-critical treatment
that follows Mach's conceptual development and the culmination of his
work in a unique and intriguing natural philosophy. Physicists,
psychologists, philosophers of science, historians of
twentieth-century thought and culture, and educators will find this
volume a valuable help in interpreting Mach's ideas in a context that
includes philosophy and science and the bridge between them.
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A Study in Natural Philosophy
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9789401701754
Publisert
2020
Utgiver
Vendor
Springer
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter