Leibniz's mathematical handling of death, catastrophes, and insurances
Leibniz was a practical philosopher who devoted his legal knowledge and his mathematical competence to the service of the commune bonum or public welfare. The article discusses five aspects of this service: 1. Leibniz emphasized the need for the creation of a system of public insurances that was based on the principle of solidarity. 2. He taught how to calculate the cash value of a sum of money that is to be paid in the future. 3. Leibniz acknowledged the importance of statistics for the sake of...