Download or read book Descartes written by A. C. Grayling and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2009-05-26 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scientist, mathematician, traveler, soldier-and spy-Rene Descartes was one of the founders of the modern world. His life coincided with an extraordinary time in history: the first half of the miraculous seventeenth century, replete with genius in the arts and sciences, and wracked by civil and international conflicts across Europe. But at his birth in 1596 the world was still dominated by medieval beliefs in phenomena such as miracles and spontaneous generation. It was Descartes who identified the intellectual tools his peers needed to free themselves from the grip of religious authority and in doing so he founded modern philosophy. In this new biography, A. C. Grayling tells the story of Descartes' life, and places it in his tumultuous times-with the unexpected result that an entirely new aspect of the story comes to light.
Download or read book Cogito Ergo Sum written by Richard A. Watson and published by David R. Godine Publisher. This book was released on 2002 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It was Descartes (1596-1650), says Watson (philosophy, Washington U., St. Louis), who established (or perhaps discovered) the rules of Reason, the foundation on which science and philosophy have been constructed since his time. He explores the life of the mathematician and philosopher, for readers who have no background in either field, but would l
Download or read book Descartes An Intellectual Biography written by Stephen Gaukroger and published by Clarendon Press. This book was released on 1995-03-30 with total page 522 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: René Descartes (1596-1650) is the father of modern philosophy, and one of the greatest of all thinkers. This is the first intellectual biography of Descartes in English; it offers a fundamental reassessment of all aspects of his life and work. Stephen Gaukroger, a leading authority on Descartes, traces his intellectual development from childhood, showing the connections between his intellectual and personal life and placing these in the cultural context of seventeenth century Europe. Descartes' early work in mathematics and science produced ground breaking theories, methods, and tools still in use today. This book gives the first full account of how this work informed and influenced the later philosophical studies for which, above all, Descartes is renowned. Not only were philosophy and science intertwined in Descartes' life; so were philosophy and religion. The Church of Rome found Galileo guilty of heresy in 1633; two decades earlier, Copernicus' theories about the universe had been denounced as blasphemous. To avoid such accusations, Descartes clothed his views about the relation between God and humanity, and about the nature of the universe, in a philosophical garb acceptable to the Church. His most famous project was the exploration of the foundations of human knowledge, starting from the proof of one's own existence offered in the formula Cogito ergo sum, `I am thinking therefore I exist'. Stephen Gaukroger argues that this was not intended as an exercise in philosophical scepticism, but rather to provide Descartes' scientific theories, influenced as they were by Copernicus and Galileo, with metaphysical legitimation. This book offers for the first time a full understanding of how Descartes developed his revolutionary ideas. It will be welcomed by all readers interested in the origins of modern thought.
Download or read book The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter written by Steven M. Nadler and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A unique combination of philosophy, biography, and art history. The philospher, the priest, and the painter investigates the remarkable individuals and the circumstances behind a small portrait.
Download or read book Descartes His Life and Times written by Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 398 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Descartes written by Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and published by . This book was released on 1905 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Descartes s Secret Notebook written by Amir D. Aczel and published by Crown. This book was released on 2006-10-10 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: René Descartes (1596–1650) is one of the towering and central figures in Western philosophy and mathematics. His apothegm “Cogito, ergo sum” marked the birth of the mind-body problem, while his creation of so-called Cartesian coordinates have made our physical and intellectual conquest of physical space possible. But Descartes had a mysterious and mystical side, as well. Almost certainly a member of the occult brotherhood of the Rosicrucians, he kept a secret notebook, now lost, most of which was written in code. After Descartes’s death, Gottfried Leibniz, inventor of calculus and one of the greatest mathematicians in history, moved to Paris in search of this notebook—and eventually found it in the possession of Claude Clerselier, a friend of Descartes. Leibniz called on Clerselier and was allowed to copy only a couple of pages—which, though written in code, he amazingly deciphered there on the spot. Leibniz’s hastily scribbled notes are all we have today of Descartes’s notebook, which has disappeared. Why did Descartes keep a secret notebook, and what were its contents? The answers to these questions lead Amir Aczel and the reader on an exciting, swashbuckling journey, and offer a fascinating look at one of the great figures of Western culture.
Download or read book Descartes His Life and Times written by Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and published by . This book was released on 1905 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Descartes written by Geneviève Rodis-Lewis and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This major intellectual biography illuminates the personal and historical events of Descartes's life, from his birth and early years in France to his death in Sweden, his burial, and the fate of his remains. Concerned not only with historical events but also with the development of Descartes's personality, Rodis-Lewis speculates on the effect childhood impressions may have had on his philosophy and scientific theories. She considers in detail his friendships, particularly with Isaac Beeckman and Marin Mersenne. Primarily on the basis of his private correspondence, Rodis-Lewis gives a thorough and balanced discussion of his personality. The Descartes she depicts is by turns generous and unforgiving, arrogant and open-minded, loyal in his friendships but eager for the isolation his work required. Drawing on Descartes's writings and his public and private correspondence, she corrects the errors of earlier biographies and clarifies many obscure episodes in the philosopher's life.
Download or read book Descartes Bones written by Russell Shorto and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2009-08-25 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sixteen years after René Descartes' death in Stockholm in 1650, a pious French ambassador exhumed the remains of the controversial philosopher to transport them back to Paris. Thus began a 350-year saga that saw Descartes' bones traverse a continent, passing between kings, philosophers, poets, and painters. But as Russell Shorto shows in this deeply engaging book, Descartes' bones also played a role in some of the most momentous episodes in history, which are also part of the philosopher's metaphorical remains: the birth of science, the rise of democracy, and the earliest debates between reason and faith. Descartes' Bones is a flesh-and-blood story about the battle between religion and rationalism that rages to this day. A New York Times Notable Book
Download or read book Descartes A Biography written by Desmond M. Clarke and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-03-06 with total page 532 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: René Descartes is best remembered today for writing 'I think, therefore I am', but his main contribution to the history of ideas was his effort to construct a philosophy that would be sympathetic to the new sciences that emerged in the seventeenth century. To a great extent he was the midwife to the Scientific Revolution and a significant contributor to its key concepts. In four major publications, he fashioned a philosophical system that accommodated the needs of these new sciences and thereby earned the unrelenting hostility of both Catholic and Calvinist theologians, who relied on the scholastic philosophy that Descartes hoped to replace. His contemporaries claimed that his proofs of God's existence in the Meditations were so unsuccessful that he must have been a cryptic atheist and that his discussion of skepticism served merely to fan the flames of libertinism. This is the first biography in English that addresses the full range of Descartes' interest in theology, philosophy and the sciences and that traces his intellectual development through his entire career.
Download or read book Descartes Dream written by Philip J. Davis and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2005-01-01 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These provocative essays take a modern look at the 17th-century thinker's dream, examining the influences of mathematics on society, particularly in light of technological advances. They survey the conditions that elicit the application of mathematic principles; the applications' effectiveness; and how applied mathematics transform perceptions of reality. 1987 edition.
Download or read book The Young Descartes written by Harold J. Cook and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2018-03-28 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: René Descartes is best known as the man who coined the phrase “I think, therefore I am.” But though he is remembered most as a thinker, Descartes, the man, was no disembodied mind, theorizing at great remove from the worldly affairs and concerns of his time. Far from it. As a young nobleman, Descartes was a soldier and courtier who took part in some of the greatest events of his generation—a man who would not seem out of place in the pages of The Three Musketeers. In The Young Descartes, Harold J. Cook tells the story of a man who did not set out to become an author or philosopher—Descartes began publishing only after the age of forty. Rather, for years he traveled throughout Europe in diplomacy and at war. He was present at the opening events of the Thirty Years' War in Central Europe and Northern Italy, and was also later involved in struggles within France. Enduring exile, scandals, and courtly intrigue, on his journeys Descartes associated with many of the most innovative free thinkers and poets of his day, as well as great noblemen, noblewomen, and charismatic religious reformers. In his personal life, he expressed love for men as well as women and was accused of libertinism by his adversaries. These early years on the move, in touch with powerful people and great events, and his experiences with military engineering and philosophical materialism all shaped the thinker and philosopher Descartes became in exile, where he would begin to write and publish, with purpose. But though it is these writings that made ultimately made him famous, The Young Descartes shows that this story of his early life and the tumultuous times that molded him is sure to spark a reappraisal of his philosophy and legacy.
Download or read book Descartes written by Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-14 with total page 438 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from Descartes: His Life and Times The works of Descartes have, up to the present time, been known to modern literature through the celebrated edition prepared by Victor Cousin, and published, 1824-1826, in eleven octavo volumes. This edition is entirely written in French, while Descartes' writings are largely in the Latin tongue; it has no index, biography, or notes, and though at the time it was published it was considered fairly complete, none knew better than the editor that much revision was required, that the correspondence was not correctly dated, and that it was an immature piece of work. Still, such as it was, we must feel for ever grateful to one who did his utmost to provide his country with an edition of the works of him who did so much to give her glory. But, as Cousin himself came to find, the edition was not complete. He himself added certain letters in his Fragments philosophiques, and other material has been discovered since. The purpose of the work, however, to draw men to the study of the great philosopher, was fully realised. It is left for the present century to complete the work which Cousin so nobly began. The third centenary of Descartes' birth was celebrated at the Sorbonne on the 31st of March 1896, under the presidency of M. Liard, who had, when professor at Bordeaux, himself contemplated issuing a new edition of Descartes' works in conjunction with M. Tannery. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
Download or read book Descartes His Life and Times Primary Source Edition written by Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and published by Nabu Press. This book was released on 2013-12-08 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ++++ The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to ensure edition identification: ++++ Descartes, His Life And Times Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane E.P. Dutton and company, 1905 Philosophy; History & Surveys; Modern; Biography & Autobiography / Philosophers; Philosophy / History & Surveys / Modern
Download or read book Nietzsche and Modern Times written by Laurence Lampert and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1993-01-01 with total page 500 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This major work by Laurence Lampert provides a new interpretation of modern philosophy by developing Nietzsche's view that genuine philosophers set out to determine the direction of culture through their ideas and that they conceal the radical nature of their thought by their esoteric style. From this Nietzschean perspective, Francis Bacon and René Descartes can be considered the founders of modernity. Lampert argues that Bacon's positive claims for science aimed to destroy the dominance of Christianity. Descartes continued Bacon's radical program while providing it with the mathematical physics required for its success. Far from being solely an epistemological and metaphysical thinker, says Lampert, Descartes was a master writer whose comic ridicule helped bring down the Church to which he paid lip service. Both Bacon and Descartes used the Platonic art of dissimulation to achieve their ends by making their revolutionary aims appear compatible with Christianity. Once we recognize Bacon and Descartes as legislators of modern times in a specifically Nietzschean sense, we can also see Nietzsche in a new way--as the first thinker to have understood modern times and transcended it in a postmodern worldview. According to Lampert, Nietzsche provides a new foundation for culture, a joyous science that reveals the grandeur and purposeless play of the cosmic whole and yet avoids enervating despair or destructive, dogmatic belief.
Download or read book Edison s Eve written by Gaby Wood and published by Knopf. This book was released on 2002 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A rich and informative exploration of our age-old obsession with “making life.” Could an eighteenth-century mechanical duck really digest and excrete its food? Was “the Turk,” a celebrated chess-playing and -winning machine fabricated in 1769, a dazzling piece of fakery, or could it actually think? Why was Thomas Edison obsessed with making a mechanical doll—a perfect woman, mass-produced? Can a twenty-first-century robot express human emotions of its own? Taking up themes long familiar from the realms of fairy tales and science fiction, Gaby Wood traces the hidden prehistory of a modern idea—the thinking, hoaxes, and inventions that presaged contemporary robotics and the current experiments with artificial intelligence. Informed by the author’s scientific and historical research, Edison’s Eve is also a brilliant literary, cultural, and philosophical examination of the motives that have driven human beings to pursue the creation of mechanical life, and the effects of that pursuit—both in its successes and in its failures—on our sense of what makes us human.
