In:
Revue d'histoire des sciences, PERSEE Program, Vol. 42, No. 1 ( 1989), p. 109-122
Abstract:
SUMMARY. — Taking as a starting point the ideas regarding symmetry as they appear in the works of the French physicist, Hauy, this article examines the development of these ideas by a group of German crystallographers (Weiss, Frankenheim, Hessel and Justus Grassmann) during the period 1815-1830. Whereas Hauy was an atomist, the Germans subscribed to the belief in the existence of irreducible forces independent of matter ("dynamism"). The article explores the influence of these ontological views on Weiss' program of research and the classifications of axial symmetries that he obtained, that is to say, the finite orthogonal groups, in today's language.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0151-4105
DOI:
10.3406/rhs.1989.4136
Language:
French
Publisher:
PERSEE Program
Publication Date:
1989
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2375320-1
SSG:
19,2
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