Internal logic. Foundations of mathematics from Kronecker to Hilbert (Q1396583)

The book is devoted to the study of certain tendencies and ideas in the foundations of mathematics which were especially developed in the period 1880-1930. It concerns the internal logic, where internal means the same as what was expressed as ``inhaltlich''. Hence internal logic is the logic of content. The content is here arithmetic and the emphasis is on a constructive logic of arithmetic. The author considers Kronecker's general arithmetic of forms (polynomials). This, together with Fermat's infinite descent, is used in the proof of the internal consistency. The whole problem is studied in the context of a radical arithmetization of mathematics and logic. Ideas and proposals of Hilbert, Frege, Cantor, Dedekind and Husserl are discussed. The book can be of interest to logicians, philosophers and mathematicians (working in the foundations of mathematics) as well as to historians.