komponisto comments on Settled questions in philosophy - Less Wrong

32 Post author: lukeprog 16 February 2011 06:53AM

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Comment author: komponisto 16 February 2011 02:18:23PM *  8 points [-]

Mathematics is full of precise and illuminating solutions to previously-confusing philosophical problems; so much so that you might call mathematics itself "precise philosophy". For example:

  • What is the nature of space, extension, and continuity? Answer.

In general, whenever you see a "cryptic" definition of a concept in mathematics that generalizes but doesn't superficially resemble some previous concept, you're dealing with the answer to a question of the form "what is the 'philosophical essence' of concept X?"

Mathematicians have thus achieved the ultimate philosopher's dream: answers of the form "the meaning of life is 42" which are true and meaningful!

Zeno's paradoxes have been mentioned in another comment. For "theological" questions, see here.

Comment author: Jayson_Virissimo 16 February 2011 04:47:35PM 1 point [-]

Mathematicians have thus achieved the ultimate philosopher's dream

Plato agreed, which is why he held up geometry as the standard for judging other "sciences".

Comment author: Marius 17 February 2011 05:41:20PM 1 point [-]

And much later, it was shown that the geometric "truths" that were settled questions do not describe the physical world as had been settled. Indeed, it turned out that there are many geometries other than Euclidean geometry. Solved problems need not stay solved, even in mathematics.