Mind and Nature. Selected Writings on Philosophy, Mathematics, and Physics

Edited by Peter Pesic, these works show a side of Weyl deeply concerned about the nature of infinity, knowledge, and truth. Hermann Weyl (1885-1955) is one of the twentieth century's most important mathematicians, as well as a seminal figure in the development of quantum physics and general relativity. He was also an eloquent writer with a lifelong interest in the philosophical implications of the startling new scientific developments with which he was so involved. Mind and Nature is a collection of Weyl's most important general writings on philosophy, mathematics, and physics, including pieces that have never before been published in any language or translated into English, or that have long been out of print. Complete with Peter Pesic's introduction, notes, and bibliography, these writings reveal an unjustly neglected dimension of a complex and fascinating thinker. In addition, the book includes more than twenty photographs of Weyl and his family and colleagues, many of which are previously unpublished. – Included here are Weyl's exposition of his important synthesis of electromagnetism and gravitation, which Einstein at first hailed as "a first-class stroke of genius"; two little-known letters by Weyl and Einstein from 1922 that give their contrasting views on the philosophical implications of modern physics; and an essay on time that contains Weyl's argument that the past is never completed and the present is not a point. Also included are two book-length series of lectures, “The Open World” (1932) and “Mind and Nature” (1934), each a masterly exposition of Weyl's views on a range of topics from modern physics and mathematics. Finally, four retrospective essays from Weyl's last decade give his final thoughts on the interrelations among mathematics, philosophy, and physics, intertwined with reflections on the course of his life. – Introduction. – Ch 1. Electricity and Gravitation (1921); – Ch 2. Two Letters by Einstein and Weyl on a Metaphysical Question (1922); – Ch 3. Time Relations in the Cosmos, Proper Time, Lived Time, and Metaphysical Time (1927); – Ch 4. The Open World: Three Lectures on the Metaphysical Implications of Science (1932); – Ch 5. Mind and Nature (1934); – Ch 6. Address at the Princeton Bicentennial Conference (1946); – Ch 7. Man and the Foundations of Science (ca.1949); – Ch 8. The Unity of Knowledge (1954); – Ch 9. Insight and Reflection (1955). M.-M. V.