-
Early Life
Kuhn was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on July 18th 1922. He began progressive schooling from a early age. From progressive schooling he graduated from Harvard with a BSc in physics followed by his MSc and PhD. -
Period: to
Thomas Kuhns Life
-
Kuhn Invited to Deliver Course at Harvard
Kuhn was invited to deliver a History of science course for undergrads, while attempting to understand Aristotle's concepts of motion in physics, Kuhn came about that modern physics was hindering his perception saying "Given that formulation, I rapidly discovered that Aristotle had known almost no mechanics at all"(Guardian). Once he understood that this was coming from the ancient Greeks, Aristotle's physics became more understandable. -
Period: to
Beginning of Kuhn's Philosophy Journey
Thomas became a full professor at the University of CA Berkley. He went to UC Berkley looking to take up history of science but on the philosophy side. Article reads "At Berkeley Kuhn’s colleagues included Stanley Cavell, who introduced Kuhn to the works of Wittgenstein, and Paul Feyerabend. With Feyerabend Kuhn discussed a draft of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions"(Bird). Thus the great beginning. -
The Copernican Revolution
Kuhn's first book really led the way for the second book and the introduction of paradigm shifts. He was studying how they came to the heliocentric theory and the different variants before it. This was a pretty important philosophical point in his life. -
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Kuhns big moment of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions was groundbreaking while introducing paradigm shifts. Paradigm shifts shook the community's and had everyone questioning the way things are brought about. Paradigm shifts are a way of contradicting old ways and shifting to a new and improved way. https://youtu.be/fV-vh9y_TQs?si=XP1wg__rKpxnNsKw -
The Book Symposium
Chaired by Karl Popper, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions was quickly criticized by his colleagues. Even as far as saying his idea of normal science "fits organized crime as well as it does science" (Dolby 400). -
Period: to
M.I.T.
Kuhn became a professor of philosophy and history of science at M.I.T. Then later he became the accomplished Laurence S. Rockefeller Professor of Philosophy. He furthered his influence onto students and contributed to Philosophy of science as a whole. -
The Death Of Thomas Kuhn
Thomas died at the age of 73 due to battling throat and lung cancer while living in Cambridge, MA. -
Book References
Kuhn, Thomas S. The Copernican Revolution: Planetary Astronomy in the Development of Western Thought. Vintage Books, 1957. Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. 1st ed., University of Chicago, 1962. -
References and Sources 1
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Thomas S. Kuhn". Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Jul. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-S-Kuhn. Dolby, R. G. A. “Philosophy of Science - Criticism and the Growth of Knowledge. Proceedings of the International Colloquium in the Philosophy of Science, London 1965, Volume 4. Ed. by Imre Lakatos and Alan Musgrave. London: Cambridge University Press. Pp. Viii 282. 1970. The British Journal for the History of Science, 1971, pp. 400–400. -
References and Sources 2
Naughton, John. “Thomas Kuhn: The Man Who Changed the Way the World Looked at Science.” The Guardian, The Guardian, 22 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/science/2012/aug/19/thomas-kuhn-structure-scientific-revolutions. Gelder, Lawrence Van. “Thomas Kuhn, 73; Devised Science Paradigm.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 19 June 1996, www.nytimes.com/1996/06/19/us/thomas-kuhn-73-devised-science-paradigm.html. -
References and Sources 3
Bird, Alexander, "Thomas Kuhn", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.),
https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2022/entries/thomas-kuhn/