-
The birth of Bas van Fraassen
Bastiaan Cornelis van Fraassen was born in the German-occupied Netherlands on the fifth of April in 1941. It is important to note that his father, he was a steam fitter, was forced by the Nazis to work in a factory in Hamburg. This was a tragedy and caused the family to be separated. The happy part of this story is that after the war the family reunited and emigrated to Edmonton, in Western Canada. -
Constructive Empiricism video
Follow this link to learn about Bas Van Fraassen's Constructive Empiricism. The video is short and defines this very well. https://youtu.be/rlejBkg8DAU 1980, Bas Van Fraassen major contribution -
Period: to
Education and occupations
received his B.A. in philosophy from the University of Alberta in 1963, he received his M.A. in 1964 and his Ph.D.n 1966, writing a dissertation on the causal theory of time under the direction of Adolph Grünbaum. He received an offer from Yale, where he taught from 1966 to 1969.He also taught at the University of Toronto (1973–81), and the University of Southern California (1976–81). -
The Scientific Image
n 1980 van Fraassenn published his book "The Scientific Image" in which he coined the term "constructive empiricism." Van Fraassen defines the view as follows: "Science aims to give us theories which are empirically adequate; and acceptance of a theory involves as belief only that it is empirically adequate."
With this doctrine, van Fraassen is widely credited with rehabilitating scientific anti-realism. Learn more about constructive empiricism here: -
Lakatos Award
n 1986, van Fraassen won the Lakatos Award, and award named after Imre Lakatos, and endowed by the Latsis Foundation. It is awarded annually to somebody who has made great contribution to the philosophy of science community in the form of a book published in English within the last six years. Van Fraassen recieved this award for his work "The Scientific Image." -
Laws and Symmetry
Bas van Fraassen published "Laws and Symmetry" in 1989. In the book van Fraassen rejects the argument that there are laws of nature, or that we must believe there are. The book further builds upon the empiricist view of science previously described in his work. -
Scientific Representation: Paradoxes of Perspective
The most recent book van Fraassen has published, "Scientific Representation: Paradoxes of Perspective" presents a new way of looking at science. He considers scientific measurement outcomes as representations. In the book he mentions many paradoxes that have come up in contemporary science, as well as makes a complex analysis between appearance and reality in the scientific world. -
Bas van Fraassen today
the world of Science Bas Van Fraassen is currently still alive. He is a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at San Francisco State University and the McCosh Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Princeton University. The amount of accomplishments that he has are quite admirable and he continues to attempt to answer philosophical questions today at the age of seventy-seven. -