Envisioning Transformations – The Practice of Topology

In Brendan Larvor (ed.), Mathematical Cultures: The London Meetings 2012-2014. Springer International Publishing. pp. 25-50 (2016)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

The objective of this article is twofold. First, a methodological issue is addressed. It is pointed out that even if philosophers of mathematics have been recently more and more concerned with the practice of mathematics, there is still a need for a sharp definition of what the targets of a philosophy of mathematical practice should be. Three possible objects of inquiry are put forward: (1) the collective dimension of the practice of mathematics; (2) the cognitives capacities requested to the practitioners; and (3) the specific forms of representation and notation shared and selected by the practitioners. Moreover, it is claimed that a broadening of the notion of ‘permissible action’ as introduced by Larvor (2012) with respect to mathematical arguments, allows for a consideration of all these three elements simultaneously. Second, a case from topology – the proof of Alexander’s theorem – is presented to illustrate a concrete analysis of a mathematical practice and to exemplify the proposed method. It is discussed that the attention to the three elements of the practice identified above brings to the emergence of philosophically relevant features in the practice of topology: the need for a revision in the definition of criteria of validity, the interest in tracking the operations that are performed on the notation, and the constant and fruitful back-and-forth from one representation to another in dealing with mathematical content. Finally, some suggestions for further research are given in the conclusions.

Links

PhilArchive

External links

  • This entry has no external links. Add one.
Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

An Inquiry into the Practice of Proving in Low-Dimensional Topology.Silvia De Toffoli & Valeria Giardino - 2014 - In Giorgio Venturi, Marco Panza & Gabriele Lolli (eds.), From Logic to Practice: Italian Studies in the Philosophy of Mathematics. Cham: Springer International Publishing. pp. 315-336.
The Argument of Mathematics.Andrew Aberdein & Ian J. Dove (eds.) - 2013 - Dordrecht, Netherland: Springer.
Axioms in Mathematical Practice.Dirk Schlimm - 2013 - Philosophia Mathematica 21 (1):37-92.
Categorical Foundations and Mathematical Practice.C. McLarty - 2012 - Philosophia Mathematica 20 (1):111-113.
Fuzzy topology representation for MV-algebras.Jialu Zhang & Quanfa Chen - 2009 - Mathematical Logic Quarterly 55 (3):259-270.
The Philosophy of Mathematical Practice.Paolo Mancosu (ed.) - 2008 - Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
On the formal points of the formal topology of the binary tree.Silvio Valentini - 2002 - Archive for Mathematical Logic 41 (7):603-618.
Fuzzy topology representation for MV‐algebras.Jialu Zhang & Quanfa Chen - 2009 - Mathematical Logic Quarterly 55 (3):259-270.

Analytics

Added to PP
2017-08-23

Downloads
913 (#14,164)

6 months
122 (#25,092)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author Profiles

Silvia De Toffoli
University School of Advanced Studies IUSS Pavia
Valeria Giardino
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

References found in this work

The nature of mathematical knowledge.Philip Kitcher - 1983 - Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Mathematical Knowledge and the Interplay of Practices.José Ferreirós - 2015 - Princeton, USA: Princeton University Press.
The Philosophy of Mathematical Practice.Paolo Mancosu (ed.) - 2008 - Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
Proofs and refutations (IV).I. Lakatos - 1963 - British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 14 (56):296-342.
Proofs and Refutations.Imre Lakatos - 1980 - Noûs 14 (3):474-478.

View all 27 references / Add more references