Carl Gustav Hempel Quotes & Sayings

A geometrical theory in physical interpretation can never be validated with mathematical certainty ... ; like any other theory of empirical science, it can acquire only a more or less high degree of confirmation. — Carl Gustav Hempel

The most distinctive characteristic which differentiates mathematics from the various branches of empirical science, and which accounts for its fame as the queen of the sciences, is no doubt the peculiar certainty and necessity of its results. — Carl Gustav Hempel

The propositions of mathematics are devoid of all factual content; they convey no information whatever on any empirical subject matter. — Carl Gustav Hempel

To characterize the import of pure geometry, we might use the standard form of a movie-disclaimer: No portrayal of the characteristics of geometrical figures or of the spatial properties of relationships of actual bodies is intended, and any similarities between the primitive concepts and their customary geometrical connotations are purely coincidental. — Carl Gustav Hempel