Critical Thinkers Through History

Sigmund Freud 6 May 1856 - 23 September 1939 Critical Thinkers through history Freud is best known for his theories of the unconscious mind and the defense mechanism of repression, and for creating the clinical prac- tice of psychoanalysis for treating psychopathol- ogy. He was an early neurological researcher into cerebral palsy. Freud's work remains influ- ential in clinical approaches, and in the humani- ties and social sciences. He is considered one of the most prominent thinkers of the first half of the 20th century, in terms of originality and intellectual influence. Henry Ford July 30, 1863 - April 7, 1947 The founder of the Ford Motor Company, the developer of the Model T and the assembly line technique of mass production - which revolu- tionized automobile production. He is credited with "Fordism" - the mass production of inex- pensive goods coupled with high wages for workers. Frank Lloyd Wright June 8, 1867 - April 9, 1959 Wright designed more than 1,000 projects, which resulted in more than 500 completed works. His work includes original and innovative examples of many different building types, including offices, churches, schools, skyscrapers, hotels, and muse- ums. He has been recognized as "the greatest American architect of all time". Albert Einstein 14 March 1879-18 April 1955 Einstein is widely regarded as one of the most influential and best known scientists and intel- lectuals of all time, and he is often regarded as the father of moden physics. Mao Zedong December 26, 1893- September 9, 1976 Andrew Jackson March 15, 1767- June 8, 1845 Zedong led the People's Republic of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976. He is officially held in high regard in China as a great revolutionary, political strategist, military mastermind, and savior of the nation. Many Chinese also believe that through his policies. he laid the economic, technological and cultural foundations of modem China, transforming the country from an agrarian society into a major world power. Jackson was the seventh President of the United States. His political ambition combined with widening political participation shaped the modem Democratic Party. John Stuart Mill 20 May 1806 -8 May 1873 Mill was an influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his concep- tion of liberty justified the freedom of the indi- vidual in opposition to unlimited state control. He clearly set forth the premises of falsification as the key component in the scientific method. Kurt Vonnegut November 11, 1922- April 11, 2007 Vonnegut was one of the most influential Ameri- can writers of the 20th century. He was known for his humanist beliefs and was honorary president of the American Humanist Association. Sir Isaac Newton 4 January 1643-31 March 1727 Soren Kierkegaard 5 May 1813-11 November 1855 Bill Gates Bon October 28, 1955 Newton is considered by many scholars and members of the general public to be one of the most influential people in human history. His 1687 publication of the Philosophie Naturalis Principia Mathematica (usually called the Prin- cipia) is considered to be among the most influential books in the history of science, laying the groundwork for most of classical mechanics. Immanuel Kant 22 April 1724 - 12 February 1804 Kant was the last influential philosopher of modern Europe in the classic sequence of the theory of knowledge during the Enlightenment. Kant's thought was very influential in Germany during his lifetime, moving philosophy beyond the debate between the rationalists and empiricists. Much of his philosophical work deals with the issues of how one lives, focusing on the priority of concrete human reality over abstract thinking and highlighting the importance of personal choice and commitment. Two of his influential ideas are "subjectivity".and the notion popularly referred to as "leap of faith". He is widely regarded as the founder of Christian psychology and of existential psychology and therapy. Gates is one of the best-known entrepreneurs of the personal computer revolution. He is consistently ranked among the world's wealthi- est people, and has pursued a number of phil- anthropic endeavors, donating large amounts of money to various charitable organizations and scientific research programs through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. 1700 1800 1900 2000 Thomas Jefferson April 13, 1743-July 4, 1826 Thomas Edison February 11, 1847-October 18, 1931 Steve Wozniak Born August 11, 1950 Jefferson was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson was one of the most influential Founding Fathers, known for his promotion of the ideals of republicanism in the United States. He achieved distinction as, among other things, a horticulturist, political leader, architect, archaeologist, paleon- tologist, musician, inventor, and founder of the University of Virginia. Wozniak co-founded Apple Computer, Inc. with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne. His inventions and machines are credited with contributing significantly to the personal computer revolution of the 1970s. Wozniak created the Apple I and Apple Il computers in the mid-1970s. Edison developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. Carl Sagan November 9, 1934 - December 20, 1996 Henry David Thoreau July 12, 1817-May 6, 1862 Sagan published more than 600 scientific papers and popular articles and was author, co-author, or editor of more than 20 books. In Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surround- ings, and his essay, Civil Disobedience, an argument for individual resistance to civil gov- ernment in moral opposition to an unjust state. his works, he advocated skeptical inquiry and the scientific method. He pioneered exobiology and promoted the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Ralph Waldo Emerson May 25, 1803- April 27, 1882 Jack Kerouac March 12, 1922 -October 21, 1969 Many scholars identify Emerson as one of the first writers to develop a literary style and vision that is uniquely American, rather than following in the footsteps of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and others who were strongly influenced by their British cultural heritage. Kerouac is considered a literary iconoclast, and alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Gins- berg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing covering topics such as jazz, promiscuity, Buddhism, drugs, poverty, and travel. His writ- ings have inspired many other writers. Nelson Mandela Born July 18 1918 Mandella served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully repre- sentative democratic election. Following his release from prison, Mandela led his party in the negotiations that led to multi-racial democ- racy in 1994. As president from 1994 to 1999, he frequently gave priority to reconciliation. He received the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize. Edwin Hubble November 20, 1889 - September 28, 1953 Hubble profoundly changed our understanding of the universe by demonstrating the existence of galaxies other than our own, the Milky Way. He also discovered that the degree of "Doppler shift" observed in the light spectra from other galaxies increased in proportion to a particular galaxy's distance from Earth. This relationship became known as Hubble's law, and helped establish that the universe is expanding. Winston Churchill 30 November 1874-24 January 1965 Churchill is known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War (WWII), and is widely regarded as one of the great wartime leaders. To date, he is the only British prime minister to have received the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the first person to be recognised as an honorary citizen of the United States. Marie Curie 7 November 1867 -4 July 1934 Curie was a pioneer in the field of radioactivity and the first person honored with two Nobel Prizes(1)-in physics and chemistry. To attain her scientific achievements, she had to over- come barriers that were placed in her way because she was a woman. Wilbur Wright April 16, 1867 - May 30, 1912 Orville Wright August 19, 1871-January 30, 1948 The Wright Brothers are generally credited with inventing and building the world's first success- ful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight. Although not the first to build and fly experimental aircraft, the Wright brothers were the first to invent aircraft controls that made fixed-wing powered flight possible. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi 2 October 1869 -30 January 1948 Ghandi was the pre-eminent political and spiritual leader of India during the Indian independence move- ment. He pioneered satyagraha - resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience, a philosophy firmly founded upon ahimsa, or total nonviolence. This concept helped India to gain independence, and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. He is officially honoured in India as the Father of the Nation.