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Birth
Ian Hacking was born February 18th, 1936 in Vancouver, British Columbia. -
Graduated from the University of British Columbia
Hacking graduated from the University of British Columbia with a BA in mathematics and physics (insert). -
Graduated from Cambridge University
Earning a BA, MA, and Ph.D. in Moral Sciences, Hacking graduated from Cambridge University in 1962. -
Published "The Logic of Statistical Interference"
"One of Ian Hacking's earliest publications, this book showcases his early ideas on the central concepts and questions surrounding statistical reasoning. He explores the basic principles of statistical reasoning and tests them, both at a philosophical level and in terms of their practical consequences for statisticians. Hacking's influential and original work has been revived for a new generation of readers." -
Published "The Emergence of Probability"
Hacking published “The Emergence of Probability.” Hacking dives into his beliefs that the probability of a predetermined set of beliefs was 50/50 and that the other 50% would be because of randomness/chance. In the book, he shares his critique of the early ideas of probability, induction, and statistical inference. He argues the transformations that probability ideas have been a result of probability theory and relates to the space on the subject that is still being studied. -
Published "The Taming of Chance"
In 1990, Ian Hacking released a book pertaining to probability and he titled it “The Taming of Chance.” It is considered to be world changing. In this literature, this book discussed how important probability really determines our lives on a daily basis. This book was reported as “One of the best 100 Non-Fiction works of the 20th century.” by Modern Family. -
Published "Rewriting the Soul"
Hacking in "Rewriting the Soul" uses the MPD epidemic and its links with the contemporary concept of child abuse to scrutinize today’s moral and political climate, especially our power struggles about memory and our efforts to cope with psychological injuries. -
Published "Mad Travellers: Reflections on the Reality of Transient Mental Illness"
Ian Hacking tells the fascinating tale of Albert Dadas, a native of France’s Bordeaux region and the first diagnosed mad traveler. Dadas suffered from a strange compulsion that led him to travel obsessively, often without identification, not knowing who he was or why he traveled. Hacking raises probing questions about the nature of mental disorders, the cultural repercussions of their diagnosis, and the relevance of this century-old case study for today’s overanalyzed society. -
Published "The Social Construction of What?"
Hacking finds some of his most telling cases, from the conflict between biological and social approaches to mental illness to vying accounts of current research in sedimentary geology. He also cautiously examines the ways in which advanced research on new weapons influences not the content but the form of science. In conclusion, Hacking comments on the “culture wars” in anthropology, in particular a spat between leading ethnographers over Hawaii and Captain Cook. -
Published "An Introduction to Probability and Inductive Logic"
The key features of this book are a lively and vigorous prose style; lucid and systematic organization and presentation of ideas; many practical applications; a rich supply of exercises drawing on examples from such fields as psychology, ecology, economics, bioethics, engineering, and political science; numerous brief historical accounts of how fundamental ideas of probability and induction developed; and a full bibliography of further reading. -
Published "Historical Ontology"
Hacking here offers his reflections on the philosophical uses of history. The focus of this volume is the historical emergence of concepts and objects, through new uses of words and sentences in specific settings, and new patterns or styles of reasoning within those sentences. In its lucid and thoroughgoing look at the historical dimension of concepts, the book is at once a systematic formulation of Hacking’s approach and its relation to other types of intellectual history. -
Influence in Philosophy
He pioneered the naturalistic approach in the philosophy of science. His research on social constructionism, transient mental illnesses and the looping effect of the human kinds make use of historical materials to shed light on how developments in the social,
medical, and behavioral sciences have shaped our contemporary conceptions of identity and agency.
His other contributions include his work on the philosophy of mathematics, philosophy of statistics, philosophy of logic, inductive logic. -
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Awards Given
In 2000, he was the first anglophone to be given a permanent chair at the Collège de France. In addition to the $50,000 Molson Prize, Hacking won the inaugural Killam Prize for the Humanities in 2002. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, of the British Academy, and of the Royal Society of Canada. Ian Hacking was named a Companion of the Order of Canada in 2004. -
Balzan Prize
"For his fundamental and pioneering contributions to philosophy and the history of social and natural sciences; for the thematic breadth of his research; for his original epistemological perspective centred on a version of scientific realism and defined in contrast with the dominant paradigm in the philosophy of science of the twentieth century." -
Today
Ian Hacking is still teaching today, he is a professor at the University of Toronto. Actually not just any professor, but a University Emeritus Professor, where he teaches the Philosophy of Language and Philosophy of Science. He has received many awards and honors. Not only was he a fellow at Stanford University but he also became the Chair of Stanford’s Department of Philosophy in 1980. He is currently a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. -