THE EVOLUTION OF MATHEMATICAL PROOF FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
Anna Yurievna Storozhuk
Institute of Philosophy and Law, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
Keywords: mathematical proof, clarity and distinctness, Descartes, Newton, Leibniz
Abstract
The article is aimed to examine the stages of development of mathematical proof as successive stages in the development of human thinking which progresses towards the increase of abstrаction. The point of view of I. Hacking is analyzed, who identifies different styles of mathematical proof - the approaches of Descartes and Leibniz. It is shown that these styles cannot be considered, following Hacking, as independent approaches to understanding proof. They represent the development of human consciousness, which advances from concrete concepts to abstrаct thinking, therefore the approaches of Descartes and Leibniz should be considered as historically developing approaches to under-standing evidence.
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