Volume 26, Issue 4, 2010
В.А. Бажанов
Pages 136-146
Did Imyaslavie Fostered the Development of Mathematics?
The paper deals with the problem of heuristic impact of philosophical ideas upon science, namely the possibility of descriptive set theory construction by Moscow Mathematical School (MMS) members due to their religious and mystical worldview within so called ‘imyaslavie’ which was shared by some Russian scientists and provided them with enormous degree of freedom in creativity. L. Graham and J.M. Kantor in the book “Naming Infinity. A True Story of Religious Mysticism and Mathematical Creativity” (2009) claim that descriptive set theory was constructed mainly due to the mysticism of imyaslavie supporters and the French mathematicians, rational in their beliefs, failed to propose this theory due to the limits imposed by rationality upon their creativity. The author puts forward arguments and concrete facts against this standpoint.