Revolutions in Mathematics

Social revolutions--critical periods of decisive, qualitative change--are a commonly acknowledged historical fact. The publication of Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions in 1962 led to an exciting discussion of revolutions in the natural sciences; an off-shoot of this was a debate in the United States in the mid-1970's as to whether the concept of revolution could be applied to mathematics as well as science. This book is the first comprehensive examination of the question. It reprints the original papers of leading supporters and opponents, together with additional chapters giving their current views. To this are added new contributions from nine other experts in the history of mathematics, who each discuss an important episode and consider whether it was a revolution. The whole question of mathematical revolutions is thus examined comprehensively and from a variety of perspectives, and will interest mathematicians, philosophers, and historians alike. Read more