MACH

mach, ernst (1838- ), austrian physicist and psychologist, was born on the 18th of february 1838 at turas in moravia, and studied at vienna. he was professor of mathematics at gratz (1864-1867), of physics at prague (1867-1895), and of physics at vienna (1895-1901). in 1879 and 1880 as _rector magnificus_ he fought against the introduction of czech instead of german in the prague university. in 1901 he was made a member of the austrian house of peers. in philosophy he began with a strong predilection for the physical side of psychology, and at an early age he came to the conclusion that all existence is sensation, and, after a lapse into noumenalism under the influence of fechner's _psychophysics_, finally adopted a universal physical phenomenalism. the ego he considers not an entity sharply distinguished from the non-ego, but merely, as it were, a medium of continuity of sensory impressions. his whole theory appears to be vitiated by the confusion of physics and psychology. works.--_kompendium der physik fur mediziner_ (vienna, 1863); _einleitung in die heimholtz'sehe musiktheorie_ (gratz, 1866); _die gesch. u. d. wurzel d. satzes von d. erhaltung d. arbeit_ (prague, 1872); _grundlinien d. lehre v. d. bewegungsempfindungen_ (leipzig, 1875); _die mechanik in ihrer entwickelung_ (leipzig, 1883; rev. ed., 1908; eng. trans., t. j. mccormack, 1902); _beitrage zur analyse d. empfindungen_ (jena, 1886), 5th ed., 1906, entitled _die analyse d. empfindungen; leitfaden d. physik fur studierende_ (prague, 1881, in collaboration); _popularwissenschaftliche vorlesungen_ (3rd ed., leipzig, 1903); _die prinzipien d. warmelehre_ (2nd ed., 1900); _erkenntnis und irrtum_ (leipzig, 1905).