Descartes
[ dey-kahrt; French dey-kart ]
/ deɪˈkɑrt; French deɪˈkart /
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noun
Re·né [ruh-ney; French ruh-ney], /rəˈneɪ; French rəˈneɪ/, 1596–1650, French philosopher and mathematician.
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British Dictionary definitions for Descartes
Descartes
/ (ˈdeɪˌkɑːt, French dekart) /
noun
René (rəne). 1596–1650, French philosopher and mathematician. He provided a mechanistic basis for the philosophical theory of dualism and is regarded as the founder of modern philosophy. He also founded analytical geometry and contributed greatly to the science of optics. His works include Discours de la méthode (1637), Meditationes de Prima Philosophia (1641), and Principia Philosophiae (1644)
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Related adjective: CartesianCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Scientific definitions for Descartes
Descartes
[ dā-kärt′ ]
French mathematician and philosopher who discovered that the position of a point can be determined by coordinates, a discovery that laid the foundation for analytic geometry.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
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