Ernst Mach's Vienna 1895-1930: Or Phenomenalism as Philosophy of Science (Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science Book 218)

Section Guide 1. Prolegomena 2. Biographical Sketch 3. Epistemology 4. Textbook Ontology 1. PROLEGOMENA While both philosophers and historians almost always love truth and the search for truth, and both often carry out extensive research, there can be noticeable differences when historians write about the history of philosophy and when philosophers write about it. Philosophers often look at the past with categories and interests taken from the present or at the least from the recent past, but many historians, especially those who love research for its own sake, will try to look at the past from a perspective either from that period or from even earlier. Both camps look for roots, but view them with different lenses and presupposi tions. This prolegomena has been added to prepare some philosophers for what will hopefully only be the mildest of shocks, for seeing the history of philosophy in a way which does not treat what is recent or latest as best, but which loves the context of ideas for its own sake, a context which can be very foreign to contemporary likes and dislikes. To be sure, we historians can deceive ourselves as easily as philosophers, but we tend to do so about different things.

This work gives insight into the philosophical influence Ernst Mach (1838-1916) has had on leading Viennese physicists and philosophers of his time by relating the ideas and works of these men to Mach's phenomenalism. The relation between Mach and the University of Vienna Philosophical Society is also examined. In the process little-known documents and correspondence from Mach are presented. Additionally, this extensive research helps clarify the conflict between Mach and most physicists over the reality of atoms and places the claim of Mach and his followers to represent science and philosophy of science against the claim of Planck and Einstein that phenomenalism and positivism were not even compatible with science.
Audience: This is an ideal book for both graduate students and scholars in the field of history and philosophy of science.

Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-27 Friedrich Adler....Pages 29-59 Philipp Frank....Pages 61-83 Erwin Schrödinger....Pages 85-104 Otto Neurath 1913–1915....Pages 105-122 Von Hayek, Bergmann, and Mayerhöfer....Pages 123-138 Wittgenstein’s Machist Sources....Pages 139-158 Carnap’s Machist “Phase”....Pages 159-186 Musil between Mach and Stumpf....Pages 187-209 Husserl VS. Jerusalem....Pages 211-235 Alois Höfler — Polymath....Pages 237-276 The University of Vienna Philosophical Society....Pages 277-314 Back Matter....Pages 315-350