Maldonado, C. 2008. Complejidad y Ciencias Sociales desde el aporte de las Matemáticas Cualitativas. Cinta moebio 33: 153-170

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Complexity and Social Sciences from the contribution of Qualitative Mathematics

Dr. Carlos E. Maldonado (carlos.maldonado44@urosario.edu.co)Facultad de Administración, Universidad del Rosario (Bogotá, Colombia)

Abstract

This paper depicts a subject that has been obliterated both in philosophy, philosophy of science and the sciences of complexity, namely: the importance of social sciences and the way they can be enriched by the mathematics of complex systems. As a consequence, the article presents and discusses both the mathematics of dynamic systems and the philosophy of mathematics of complex systems. Hence, its broad and descriptive character. Throughout this paper the main concepts, categories, tools, approaches and authors of the philosophy of mathematics of complexity are outlined and introduced. It is, therefore, an exploratory article in which, nonetheless, a general thesis is claimed, thus: over against the traditional problem I the philosophy of mathematics, which is about the foundations of mathematics, when dealing with complexity the question about foundation becomes secondary if not irrelevant. The mathematics of complexity is the junction of mathematics and time. In any case, the very core of all concerns is, after all, the care for human life and life in general on earth.

Key words: sciences of complexity, non-linearity, philosophy of science, social systems, time, evolution