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Early Life Accomplishments
Hilary Putnam was born in Chicago IL. He was the only Child to Samuel and Riva Putnam. He studied mathematic and philosophy at university of Pennsylvania, Harvard and UCLA where he earned his P.h.D 1951. He went on to join the Harvard philosophy department where he retired in 2000. This American Philosopher went on to make great contributions to philosophy of mind, language, mathematics, logic and science. -
"Philosophy and Our Mental Life"
Dr. Putnam was widely regarded for his contributions to the philosophy of mind, such as is ideas about functionalism. The materialistic theory of the mind that correlates mental states with their respective sensory stimulations, physical states or behaviors."Pain, for example, might be defined as a type of neurophysiological state that is caused by things like cuts and burns and that causes mental states, such as fear, and “pain behaviour,” such as saying “ouch.”" -
Twin Earth Thought Experiment
During his paper "The Meaning of Meaning" he describes the Twin Earth Experiment. The Twin Earth Experiment is a world identical to earth; the people, solar system, though. The chemical makeup of water on Earth is H2O but on Twin Earth it is XYZ. He inspired new ways of thinking of the mind, and Language. He provided strong arguments on metaphysical realism, which as was highly valuable in the founding of analytics and pragmatic traditions. -
Brain in a Vat
Dr. Putnam argued against the Brain in a Vat theory. His reasoning was that the language differences between the Brain in a Vat and a human would be completely different. The Brain in a Vat would conjure up the best images it could think of without the world experience. He concluded that if you were a brain in a vat you wouldn't be able to conjure up an image seeing that you've never experienced a Brain in a Vat -
Realism with a Human Face
A book written by Hilary Putnam Edited by James Connate and published by Harvard University Press. He wanted to implant philosophy into social life. It connects Metaphysics cultural and literary issue by arguing the issues presented in the fall of philosophical realism does not necessarily mean the fall into far left of relativism and postmodern skepticism. Dr. Putnam states he's rejections of the type identity thesis. -
Citations
Ben-Menahem, Yemima. "Hilary Putnam". Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Jul. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hilary-Putnam. Accessed 8 September 2024. Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "functionalism". Encyclopedia Britannica, 16 Feb. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/functionalism-philosophy-of-mind. Accessed 8 September 2024. Putnam, Hilary. Realism with a human face. Harvard University Press, 1992.