Science et Méthode

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1. rramadassSep 2026
   In case you haven't read it; see "Science and Method by Henri Poincare" - https://archive.org/details/sciencemethod00poinuoft

   Here is a summary - https://thetelos.org/science-and-method-science-et-methode-h...

   Here is a video discussion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ-t8-igDZo

   The thesis is that Science is made for efficiency and hence does not include everything (which is infinite). It only looks for a hierarchy of interesting facts and focuses on simple foundational recurring phenomena from nature. It then uses the language of Mathematics to economize and impose order on the complexity to make it tractable.

   Finally, our subconscious prefers aesthetic attributes and hence we often find/create harmony/symmetry/beauty in our mathematical products.

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2. faragonJul 2018
   "Science and Method" (1908, "Science et méthode" -original title in French-) is Poincaré's book the blog post author is speaking about. In my opinion, Poincaré's book is very valuable, and useful for anyone dealing with non trivial problems, no matter if there is "unconscious though" or not.
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3. faragonJun 2017
   Eye-opening/shocking books:

   "Science et Méthode" (Henri Poincaré, 1908)

   "The Conquest of Happiness" (Bertrand Russell, 1930)

   "The Revolt of the Masses" (José Ortega y Gasset, 1930)

   "Brave New World" (Aldous Huxley, 1932)

   "Reason" (Isaac Asimov, 1941, short story)

   "Animal Farm" (George Orwell, 1945)

   "Nineteen Eighty-Four" (George Orwell, 1949)

   "Starship Troopers" (Robert A. Heinlein, 1959)

   "The Gods Themselves" (Isaac Asimov, 1972)

   "Time Enough for Love" (Robert A. Heinlein, 1973)

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4. faragonFeb 2015
   Such a marvelous mind. From works quoted in the article, I read Poincaré's "Science et méthode" (in its Spanish translation "Ciencia y método") many years ago, being student. Got shocked, in similar way to when I found Bertrand Russell's works. Brilliant, sharp, elegant, kind, insightful, beautiful, and I'm still short in adjectives. I recommend it to everyone.
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5. faragonSep 2024
   This reminds me Henri Poincaré's "Science et méthode" (1908)
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6. juanreFeb 2015
   Here's a wonderful description by Henry Poincaré (Science et Méthode, 1908) of how mathematics can indeed be done by parts of your brain you are not aware of:

   "À ce moment, je quittai Caen, où j'habitais alors, pour prendre part à une course géologique entreprise par l'Ecole des Mines. Les péripéties du voyage me firent vite oublier mes travaux mathématiques ; arrivés à Coutances, nous montâmes dans un omnibus pour je ne sais quelle promenade ; au moment où je mettais le pied sur le marchepied, l'idée me vint, sans que rien dans mes pensées mathématiques parût m'y avoir préparé, que les transformations dont j'avais fait usage pour définir les fonctions fuchsiennes étaient identiques à celles de la géométrie non euclidienne."

   An English translation:

   "At that time, I left Caen, where I was then living, to take part in a geological excursion under the School of Mines. The vicissitudes of the journey made ​​me quickly forget my mathematical work; reached Coutances, we entered an omnibus to drive somewhere; when I set foot on the step it occurred to me, without anything in my mathematical thoughts having prepared me for it, that the transformations I had used to define the Fuchsian functions were identical to those of non-Euclidean geometry."

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