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A Rational Belief: The Method of Discovery in the Complex Variable

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Abstract

The importance of mathematics in the context of the scientific and technological development of humanity is determined by the possibility of creating mathematical models of the objects studied under the different branches of Science and Technology. The arithmetisation process that took place during the nineteenth century consisted of the quest to discover a new mathematical reality in which the validity of logic would stand as something essential and central. Nevertheless, in contrast to this process, the development of mathematical analysis within a framework that largely involves intuition and geometry is a fact that cannot go unnoticed amongst the mathematics community, as we shall show in this paper through the research made by Bernhard Riemann on complex variables.

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Acknowledgments

The authors was partially supported by Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación de la Universidad de Alicante under Project GRE11-23.

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Correspondence to Juan Matías Sepulcre.

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Segura, L., Sepulcre, J.M. A Rational Belief: The Method of Discovery in the Complex Variable. Found Sci 21, 189–194 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-015-9412-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-015-9412-4

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