Place, Space and Motion (Topoi D-II-2)

The junior research group “Place, Space and Motion” investigates ancient and late ancient philosophical concepts of space/place (gr. topos) and their relation to movement and change. Research projects cover discussions on place/space ranging from Plato’s Timaeus and Aristotle’s Physics IV 1-5 to late ancient texts such as the two Corollaries on place written by the Neoplatonists and Simplicius and Philoponus. Against this background, we focus on the interrelation between physical and metaphysical concepts of space/place, different theories of movement including the emergence of the impetus theory in late Antiquity, and, finally, the problem of void space or vacuum.