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Infinity in Physics

In: Imagine Math 7

Author

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  • Jean-Marc Lévy-Leblond

    (University of Nice-Côte d’Azur)

Abstract

Is it necessary, in order to justify a physicist’s claim to deal with the infinite—a privilege that might seem reserved to the mathematician and the philosopher—to recall that physical thought has long been linked to the infinite? Archimedes (the first physicist?), and later Galileo, who devoted many pages of the Discorsi to it [1] offer two examples among others of a fundamental reflection on the nature of infinity based on the physicist’s concerns about material reality, despite the finiteness of its appearances. Nevertheless, it is too often accepted that infinity should not be part of the conceptual arsenal of physics in its own right, since “there is nothing infinite in nature”. The appearance of infinity in a physical theory would then signal, if not bankruptcy, at least a risky and perhaps abusive extrapolation of its validity. Here is a recent version of this argument:

Suggested Citation

  • Jean-Marc Lévy-Leblond, 2020. "Infinity in Physics," Springer Books, in: Michele Emmer & Marco Abate (ed.), Imagine Math 7, pages 265-276, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-030-42653-8_16
    DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-42653-8_16
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