Abstract

This book, a part of a larger work by the same authors, is concerned with the roots of scientific inquiry which are to be found in Anaxagoras' picture of the world. Application of his method, which they describe as a combination of meticulous observation and logical analysis, to the study of physical change led Anaxagoras to discover the principle of Mind as the unifying factor of all that exists. This principle, together with the description of matter in terms of homeomerous substances, is sufficient for Anaxagoras to provide explanations of all physical events, as is illustrated by the specific theories discussed in the second half of the book. While the book is intended to present conclusions rather than scholarly material, it seems to this reader that the description of Anaxagoras as scientist wholly in terms of an unexamined model of contemporary scientific method does not do him justice, insofar as it neglects to consider what may be important in the differences between his approach and ours.—O. H.