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In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a French physicist named Pierre-Simon Laplace pushed the concept of determinism into overdrive. He summarized his philosophy like this: We ought then to regard the present state of the universe as the effect of its anterior state and as the cause of the one which is to follow.
Laplace stipulates a Leibnizian chain of events between cause and effect. It is the association of determinism with a unique cause, preceding each subsequent event, which gives birth to Laplace’s vision of a Demon. It is a causal, dynamic form of determinism. The Demon, in order to function, must know the present state of the universe and its ...
Mar 1, 2014 · Abstract. In this paper I examine the foundations of Laplace’s famous statement of determinism in 1814, and argue that rather than derived from his mechanics, this statement is based on general philosophical principles, namely the principle of sufficient reason and the law of continuity. It is usually supposed that Laplace’s statement is ...
Pierre-Simon, marquis de Laplace, (born March 23, 1749, Beaumount-en-Auge, Normandy, France—died March 5, 1827, Paris), French mathematician, astronomer, and physicist who was best known for his investigations into the stability of the solar system.
Pierre Simon de Laplace was born on March 28, 1749 at Beaumont-en-Auge in Normandy, France. Born into a wealthy family, Laplace first studied at a Benedictine College in his hometown, after which he enrolled at the University of Caen in 1766. He left Caen in 1768 without obtaining a degree, moving to Paris to work with famed mathematician Jean ...
May 16, 2024 · The notion that physics and free will might be incompatible goes back at least to the ancient Greeks, but it was expressed most forcefully by French scholar and polymath Pierre-Simon Laplace.
Books. Pierre Simon Laplace, 1749-1827: A Determined Scientist. Roger Hahn. Harvard University Press, 2005 - Biography & Autobiography - 310 pages. Often referred to as the Newton of France, Pierre Simon Laplace has been called the greatest scientist of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. He affirmed the stability of the solar ...
