Ade's Philosophy Column

René Descarte should be credited with the resulting path of philosophy towards the modern radical doubt ridden philosophies held my many today. Startling words you may say, but hear me out, his "I think, therefore I am" was a precursor to modern Universities, "I drink, therefore I am", pragmatism's lurch to, "I'm pink, therefore I am", and the onward rush towards "I think I am, therefore I am, I think". Though trite in the extreme, these and similar phrases have come to dominate the structured philosophy of a certain culture, and also by myself as a late convert to his metaphysical style.

Descarte was the first philosopher to point out that distant objects appeared smaller than they really were. Until this point convention thought was that distant objects actually were smaller.

Descarte was at first a mathematician, like me. Secondly he had an intense interest in physics, like me, and thirdly, like me, he published many of his theories in Latin. It appears we have more in common than a huge intellect, many would go as far to say that he was one of the two most important men in the history of philosophy, modesty forbids me to mention the other .... ahem!

Ade x