Thomas Kuhn

By SarahKingAPUS

  • Birth

    Thomas Kuhn was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on July 18, 1922.

  • A quote on "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions"

    According to a reference entry from Great Thinkers A-Z, “Throughout thirteen succinct but thought-provoking chapters, Kuhn argued that science is not a steady, cumulative acquisition of knowledge. Instead, science is ‘a series of peaceful interludes punctuated by intellectually violent revolutions’, which he described as ‘the tradition-shattering complements to the tradition-bound activity of normal science’.” (Great Thinkers A-Z, par 2).

  • The term "Paradigm" was coined

    The reference entry touched on Kuhn being responsible for making the term “paradigm” popular. “According to Kuhn, paradigms are essential to scientific inquiry, for ‘no natural history can be interpreted in the absence of at least some implicit body of intertwined theoretical and methodological belief that permits selection, evaluation, and criticism’”. (Great Thinkers A-Z, par 3). Works Cited
    Thomas Kuhn. Continuum, 2004, http://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/contgt/thomas_kuhn/0.

  • Paradigm Shifts

    The book, "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions," by Thomas Kuhn had not only coined the term, 'paradigm', but had used it to explain paradigm shifts as science not always following the truth. The Kuhn cycle of paradigm shifts is pre-science, normal science, model draft, model crisis,model revolution, paradigm change, according to Saul McLeod.

  • Famous Work

    Thomas Kuhn had written an important book, "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions." This book was influencial that it became a required reading for many courses of education. The book was first published in 1962, and had also famously coined the term 'paradigm', which is used to explain the four stages of paradigm shifts. Educational Video
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tasVTgZc9Gw Works Cited
    Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. The University of Chicago Press, 1962.

  • Death

    Thomas Kuhn had passed away in Cambridge, Massachusetts on June 17, 1996.