French scientist, mathematician, and philosopher René Descartes lived throughout the 17th century and was known for his work in mathematics and philosophy. Despite the fact that he is considered to be the "founder of modern philosophy," his scientific reputation cannot be called into question. The Scientific Revolution of the seventeenth century was largely attributed to him, and he played a pivotal role in it. In addition, he was acknowledged as one of the founding members of the modern school of mathematics as well as the father of analytical geometry, among other honors and distinctions.
Descartes was born on March 31, 1596, in La Haye in Touraine, France, to an aristocratic Roman Catholic family. He was the son of an aristocratic Roman Catholic family. He was the son of a noble Roman Catholic family that lived in the affluent part of the country. His father died during childbirth, and his mother died shortly after giving birth. His father was a member of the Parlement de Brittany at Rennes. As a result, he was compelled to live with his grandmother and grandfather. Because of his bad health as a kid, Descartes was compelled to join the Jesuit Collège Royal Henry-Le-Grand in order to increase his educational opportunities. He used his time there to research Galileo's work, as well as mathematics and physics, among other things. Following his graduation in 1614, he pursued further studies for an additional two years, gaining a License in Civil Law and Canon Law in addition to his Baccalaureate, thus satisfying his father's desire for him to pursue a legal education.
When Descartes was 18 years old, he enlisted in the States Army of the Netherlands at Breda. He also studied military engineering at the university, and as a result of his positive experience, he opted to continue his mathematics studies at the university. Also, throughout the year, he had the opportunity to meet Isaac Beckman, the principal of a Dordrecht school, with whom he collaborated on a variety of science projects throughout the year. A mechanism for linking mathematics and physics was necessary, according to their respective viewpoints.
According to some accounts, Descartes is supposed to have experienced visions. Another was published by Adrien Baillet who stated that on a frigid November night, he would shut himself away in a room with a heater to be warm. During his military service, he claimed to have experienced three visions that he shared with others. His learning from this experience enabled him to develop a way for applying mathematical principles to philosophy, as well as develop the concept of analytical geometry, which he later published. The result of this investigation led him to the conclusion that the purpose of these visions was to encourage him to continue his scientific studies, which are ultimately a quest for true wisdom. According to Descartes, the pursuit of fundamental truth and logic will eventually lead to the resolution of scientific questions if pursued relentlessly. He was eventually successful in discovering a fundamental truth, which is known as cogito ergo sum. According to the results of the investigation, these lines have become one of the most renowned philosophical formulations of all time, which can be translated as "I believe therefore I am." As a result of his philosophical exploration, he came to the conclusion that the only way to eliminate uncertainties and ambiguities is to build theoretical information on proven mathematics.
In the Netherlands, he wrote the majority of his most important works in mathematics and philosophy, which were published after his death. When Descartes learned of Galileo's condemnation by the Catholic Church, he decided to abandon his ambitions to publish the "Traitise on the Nature of Things," a project that had taken him four years and cost him everything he had. Despite this, he did publish three widely read essays on geometry, meteorology, and dioptric, which were titled La Geometry, Les Meteors, and La Dioptrique, respectively, and which are all freely available online.
Following his discharge from the military, Descartes relocated to France, where he produced his first essay, Rules for the Direction of the Mind, which is still in print to this day. In 1630, he had a conflict with Beckman, claiming that the latter had plagiarized some of his ideas without his knowledge or permission. In Amsterdam, he engaged in an illicit relationship with Helena Jans van der Strom, a maid who worked for him.
In 1935, he married her, and the couple produced a daughter, Francine, who died five years later from complications of the pregnancy. Death of his daughter was a devastating blow to him, and it marked a turning point in his personal and professional life. In his final years, his focus shifted away from medical and scientific breakthroughs and toward philosophical exploration and the finding of the ultimate truth about existence.
