> A book with a non-standard approach to empirical mathematics is Stephan
> Koerner, "Experience and Theory" (Routledge, circa 1964) who uses a
> three-valued logic to discuss the difference between perceived or
> measured physical magnitudes and standard mathematics, including the
> non-transitivity of equality in perceived or measured magnitudes.
Check also the writings of Poincare' (there's a nice collection of
translated essays in Dover, several slim volumes; I'm away from my copy for
detailed reference). He calls a structure with transitive "greater than"
but intransitive "indistinguishable from" a _physical_ _continuum_.
Zeeman in the 60s independently developed some of the same ideas, with
biological applications in mind. Both developed the mathematics
interestingly, with some of the same errors.
Tim
____________________________________________________________
| Tim Poston Chief Scientist
| Centre for Information-enhanced Medicine
| National University of Singapore
| www.ciemed.nus.edu.sg
|___________________________________________________________
Nothing is important, but its importance is easily forgotten.