Steve Russ: Feeling for a Context: Bernard Bolzano and his Contexts

Organised by the Centre for Science, Technology and Society Studies

Further information

Dr Steve Russ (University of Warwick, UK)
Chairperson: Dr Elías Fuentes Guillén (AV ČR)

Abstract

Throughout his life, Bernard Bolzano, as Professor of Religionslehre (1805–1820) and as house-guest of the Hoffmanns (1823–1841) struggled with thetension between following his talents in mathematics and his moral mission ofpromoting the well-being (Gemeinwohl) of the community. We make proposalsfor the radical enrichment of the usual contextual factors (social, political,conceptual, etc). Consequently we show how close attention to the context ofBolzano’s life might illuminate our understanding of the way he saw his work inmathematics, his moral mission, and the tension between them.Please see the extended abstract, with questions and requests, athttps://bernardbolzano.org/Contexts2022/Abstract.pdf. The extended abstractinvites those interested to offer feedback by email before or after the event, inaddition to participation during the event.