Leibniz: Publications on Natural Philosophy

This is the first volume compiling English translations of Leibniz's journal articles on natural philosophy, presenting a selection of 26 articles, only three of which have appeared before in English translation. It also includes in full Leibniz's public controversies with De Catelan, Papin, and Hartsoeker. The articles include work in optics, on the fracture strength of materials, and on motion in a resisting medium, and Leibniz's pioneering applications of his calculus to these issues by construing them as mini-max and inverse tangent problems. Other topics covered by the articles include: criticisms of the Cartesian estimate of motive force and Leibniz's proposal of a different way of estimating force to replace it; a proposed theory of celestial motions and gravitation, and derivation of the inverse square law; challenge problems concerning the isochronous curve and the catenary; a sample of work on gaming theory; and Leibniz's critique of atomism.

Author: Richard T. W. Arthur,Jeffrey K. McDonough,Lea Aurelia Schroeder
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 09/22/2023
Series: Leibniz from Oxford
Pages: 250
Weight: 1.1lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.30w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9780192843531