- From: Jon Awbrey <jawbrey@att.net>
- Date: Fri, 10 Aug 2007 09:28:23 -0400
- To: Arisbe <arisbe@stderr.org>, Inquiry <inquiry@stderr.org>, Ontolog <ontolog-forum@ontolog.cim3.net>, Semantic Web <semantic-web@w3.org>
o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o SB = Sean Barker PH = Pat Hayes Re: http://ontolog.cim3.net/forum/ontolog-forum/2007-08/msg00269.html CC: Arisbe List, Inquiry List, Ontolog Forum, Semantic Web List SB, addressing PH: SB: You evidently have not done a course in geometry where every theorem starts with the assumption "if 2 not-equal-to 0". This leaves mathematicians permanently scared [scarred?] with the idea that pure mathematics is a formal system independent of reality -- "a game played this way" if you like -- and it is the job of applied mathematicians to identify the formal apparatus that can be used to model some aspects of reality. This is not to say that the mathematics cannot apply to reality, but rather that it is sometimes tricky to work out which parts it applies to. SB: Perhaps the question keeps arising because there is a fundamental difference in assumptions/perceptions between the different religions of mathematics and logic (to wander into another thread)? Sean, Funny you should mention it, because I happen to have spent the last quarter century working in a branch of geometry where 2 = 0, and it has a lot to do with the "ecclesiastical rapprochement" of logic and mathematics. Vide: http://www.centiare.com/Differential_Logic_and_Dynamic_Systems What I am calling "Differential Logic" here is in many respects just Differential Geometry in Characteristic 2. Jon Awbrey o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o inquiry e-lab: http://stderr.org/pipermail/inquiry/ ¢iare: http://www.centiare.com/Directory:Jon_Awbrey getwiki: http://www.getwiki.net/-UserTalk:Jon_Awbrey zhongwen wp: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Jon_Awbrey http://www.altheim.com/ceryle/wiki/Wiki.jsp?page=JonAwbrey wp review: http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?showuser=398 o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o~~~~~~~~~o
Received on Friday, 10 August 2007 13:28:51 UTC