Leibniz on the parallel postulate and the foundations of geometry. The unpublished manuscripts (Q2353896)

Leibniz did not publish much in the area of the theory of parallels, but a number of manuscripts that include material treating this topic are contained in his grand scientific opus. The author has transcribed some of those relevant passages housed in the Niedersächsische Landesbibliothek in Hannover which comprise about 25 pages in the present book. The material spans the period 1673--1715. Some of these notes are Leibniz' comments on books by other authors that he was reading, such as Euclid, Barrow, Arnauld, Clavius. One issue that is the subject of Leibniz' thinking is the quest for correct definition of what parallelism means. One should note that he asks this question not only for straight lines, but any (mostly) plane curves. One definition is that the lines are equidistant (and he notes that, for some curves, like a parabola or ellipse, this notion leads to parallel lines that are not of the same genus), or, if one of the lines meets a straight line at a right angle, then the other likewise meets the same line at the right angle. He has to clarify notions of similarity and straightness (shortest distance between two points) that he stumbles upon in these studies as well. These texts show several aspects of Leibniz' scientific mind, in particular his attitudes towards mathematics and its axiomatization (``I suppose that every axiom can be demonstrated, and that this is more important for the perfection of science, than it is thought to be.''). These passages are provided in parallel translations (some of them presented for the first time), mostly from Latin, and a few from the French. The author gives a fairly good historical context where he places these writings of Leibniz; he itemized his analysis into several chapters as follows: The theory of parallel lines in the age of Leibniz. Leibniz' epistemology of geometry and the parallel postulate. Leibniz' attempts to prove the parallel postulate. Reception and legacy. An extensive bibliography is provided and so is the index of names, but no subject index. This reviewer preferred to read Leibniz' texts before reading the historical essay under review.