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Kontinuum, Analysis, Informales – Beiträge zur Mathematik und Philosophie von Leibniz pp 147–158Cite as

Leibniz’s Calculation with Compendia

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Abstract

It has often been noted that Leibniz’s verbal descriptions of infinitesimal magnitudes vary or even appear incoherent (cf. e.g. Boyer 1959: 207–221; Earman 1975: 236–251). But in his use of them Leibniz is in fact being quite clear and explicit; his view of infinitesimals appears not to have altered since the beginning of his Hannover period or a few years later. It is not sufficient to study Leibniz’s verbal descriptions of infinitesimal magnitudes in isolation; they need to be interpreted in connection with their mathematical usage.

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  1. Hannover, Niedersachsen, Deutschland

    Herbert Breger

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  1. Herbert Breger
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Correspondence to Herbert Breger .

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  1. Leibniz-Stiftungsprofessur, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Uni. Hannover, Hannover, Germany

    Wenchao Li

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Breger, H. (2016). Leibniz’s Calculation with Compendia. In: Li, W. (eds) Kontinuum, Analysis, Informales – Beiträge zur Mathematik und Philosophie von Leibniz. Springer Spektrum, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-50399-7_12

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