British mathematician, logician, philosopher, & public intellectual Bertrand Russell was born #OTD in 1872.
One of Russell's most significant achievements is the co-authorship of "Principia Mathematica" (1910-1913) with Alfred North Whitehead. His works, such as "The Problems of Philosophy" (1912) & "Our Knowledge of the External World" (1914), explored issues related to knowledge, perception, & the scientific method.
"Physics is mathematical not because we know so much about the physical world, but because we know so little: it is only its mathematical properties that we can discover."
An Outline of Philosophy Ch.15 The Nature of our Knowledge of Physics (1927)
"The pursuit of philosophy is founded on the belief that knowledge is good, even if what is known is painful."