Abstract
THIS pamphlet deals with the principle of least action, chiefly from a philosophical and historical point of view. A few pages are given to the mathematical aspect, which the author, who has written on the calculus of variations, is exceptionally well qualified to discuss. It is often asserted that the principle was due to Maupertuis, but it is here shown that the idea was enunciated much earlier by Leibniz. His arguments were of a theological nature, and might not appeal to present-day scientific workers, but it is remarkable how much of the work of Einstein and others is in the form that Leibniz asserted could be given to every physical law.
Das Prinzip der kleinsten Wirkung von Leibniz bis zur Gegenwart.
Von Adolf Kneser. (Wissenschaftliche Grundfragen: Philosophische Abhandlungen, herausgegeben von R. Hönigswald, Band 9.) Pp. ii + 70. (Leipzig und Berlin: B. G. Teubner, 1928.) 4 gold marks.
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P., H. Das Prinzip der kleinsten Wirkung von Leibniz bis zur Gegenwart. Nature 124, 124 (1929). https://doi.org/10.1038/124124b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/124124b0
