Book

Robinson, Dave.

Introducing Descartes / Dave Robinson and Chris Garratt ; edited by Richard Appignanesi.

New York, NY : Totem Books ; Lanham, Md. : Distributed to the trade in the U.S. by National Book Network, 1998.

171, [5] pages : illustrations ; 21 cm

Text and cartoon illustrations discuss the major theories and beliefs of the philosophy of Descartes, the different questions he asked himself in order to develop his theories, and his major contributions to science, math, and philosophy.

Descartes, René, 1596-1650.

Garratt, Chris.

Appignanesi, Richard.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 172-173) and index.

Early days and youth -- The soldier -- Decartes' three dreams -- Decartes settles in Holland -- Scholasticism -- The early days of science -- What is science? -- Reduction to mathematics -- Descartes the scientist -- Cause -- Discourse of the methods -- Clear in the mind -- What is a clear idea? -- Logical and causal necessity -- Can you know wax? -- Rationalists and empiricists -- Brief history of scepticism -- The Pyrrhonists -- The Pyrrhonist arguments -- Sextus and other sceptics -- Crtesian doubt -- How to doubt everything -- Seeing isn't believing -- Dreaming -- Rationalists and reason -- The invisible demon -- Do our sense lie to us? -- Are we awake or not? -- nvisible demons? -- The impossibility of a "private language" -- Back to the basket -- The last apple: Cogito ergo Sum -- What is the Cogito? -- The Cul de Sac of the Cogito -- Public knowledge -- The clear and distinct rule -- Problems of the clear and distinct rule -- The need for God -- The trademark argument -- The Cartesian Circle -- The Ontological argument -- A series of leaky proofs -- Making mistakes -- Intellect versus will -- Belief is cheap -- Belief and faith -- A good bet -- A quiet life in Holland -- Meditations on perception -- Bringing in God again -- Mathematical certainties -- Ancient Greek mathematics -- Is the Universe mathematical? -- Descartes the mathematician -- The rigour of mathematics -- But what is mathematics? -- Mathematical relativism -- Formalists -- The success story -- Mathematical humans -- The mathematization of everything -- Res Extensa -- Res Cogitans -- Cartesian Dialism -- The dualist argument -- Thinking existence -- Problems with cartesian Dualism -- Another argument -- Human beings and language -- Brains or minds? -- Effects of brain damage -- Mind-body interaction -- Seeing and hearing the world -- Perceiving and imagining -- Trialism explains sensations -- The philosophy of mind -- Open to criticism -- The mind and body problem -- Some odd answers -- How did brains evolve minds? -- What is consciousness? -- Aspects of consciousness -- Brains not minds -- Behaviourists -- Problems with behaviouism -- Physicalists -- Problems -- Functionalism -- Humans and computers -- Can computers understand? -- The principles -- Retirement -- Descartes and ethics -- Invitation to England? -- Invitation to Sweden -- All Frenchmen dance ... -- Lessons at 5 a.m. -- Descartes' legacy -- The thinking individual -- The postmodern mind -- How do we really think? -- Knowledge and certainty -- The postmodern condition.

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194 Descarte