-
18Jul1922
On 18Jul1922 Thomas Samuel Kuhn was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. His father was Samuel Louis Kuhn and his mother Minette Kuhn (née Strook). He also had a little brother, Roger. His father was an industrial engineer and investment consultant. He also was a graduate from Harvard and MIT. His mother was a graduate from Vassar College and should would write unpaid articles for progressive organizations and worked as a free lance editor. Both parents were Jewish but they did not practice the religion. -
College Life- 1940-1949
In fall of 1940, Kuhn started school at Harvard studying in Physics. At first he struggled with the subject, but by the end he graduated with summa cum laude (highest honors) in 1943. During the war in 1943, Kuhn joined the Radio Research Laboratory’s theoretical group, which was based at Harvard. His group was tasked with developing countermeasures to enemy radar. He was then sent to Germany with the Royal Air Force officer, once done he returned to Harvard & in 1949 he gained his decorates. -
Contribution to Philosophy of Science- 1962
Kuhn was able to contribute to philosophy of science by introducing a new style of philosophy of science bringing it closer to history of science. He also contributed when he wrote his book " The Structure of Scientific Revolutions". In this book he introduced his well known Paradigm Shift. -
The Paradigm Shift- 1962
The Paradigm Shift is what Kuhn is best known for. What it is a change in scientific paradigm to another or a change of one scientific community to another. In simple terms, it means that say one theory will be replaced with a newer one and the new one will be accepted. This concept has three stages; Normal Science, Model Crisis, The Model Revolution, and Paradigm Change. -
Paradigm Shift Stages- 1962 (continued)
The first stage is where scientist are going about their business as usual, solving problems and attempting to get answers. The second stage is where the "crisis" hits, making scientist more subject to debate and discussions. The final stage is where new concepts and ways of thinking are formed. Kuhn found it appropriate to call the last stage the "revolution" because scientist would be so in depth in their own way of thinking it took something shaking things up for them to see a new way. -
Publications- 1957-1978
Some of Thomas Kuhn's most famous publications are as followed;
The Copernican Revolution (1957)
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962)
Second edition of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1970)
The Essential Tension (1977)
Blackbody Theory and the Quantum Discontinuity (1978) -
His End- 1996
On 17Jun1996 Thomas Kuhn died from suffering with throat and lung cancer for two years. He died in Cambridge, Massachusetts -
Citations
Bird, Alexander. “Thomas Kuhn.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 31 Oct. 2018, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/thomas-kuhn/. “Home.” Famous Scientists, https://www.famousscientists.org/thomas-kuhn/. Kuhn, Thomas. The Structure of Scientific Revolution. Vol. 2, Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 1970. Kuhn, Thomas S. The Essential Tension. Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 2011. Kuhn, Thomas S. The Copernican Revolution. MJF Books, 1997. -
Youtube Video
