Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Laurence Niles
How can maths be used as evidence? Maths is necessarily Platonic in nature. It is idealised. The number one is simply an idealised expression of.9999999r
Colour me not impressed when maths can't even get 1 right.
YIC
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Whatever you think of the 'idealised' numbers, the mathematical functions are not. They are absolute. Multiplication is multipication. A squre root is a square root. The results you get from using the funtions are as good as the numbers you put in.
However, numbers are not purely 'idealised'. One object is one object. One unit of defined length is one unit of defined length. If I have one brick it is not an idealised representation of 0.99999r of a brick. It is one brick.
So, given the problem of calculating the size of the planet, if you apply the correct formulae and input the correct measured quantities, you'll get a very good answer for the size of a planet to within the precision and accuracy permitted by the numbers you put in. At some point you can say that those inaccuracies really make no difference.
And we know this works well, because we have applied numbers we have obtained for sizes of planets to practical situations and they have worked. The Voyager probes, for example, relied absolutely on our prior determination of the size and mass of the outer planets to succeed in its mission. Since the probes worked, I think we can reasonably say that the mathematical 'prrof' we obtained of the size and mass was pretty damn good.