John Buridan
| Jean Buridan | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1295 Béthune, France |
| Died | 1363 |
| Alma mater | University of Paris |
| Era | Medieval philosophy |
| Region | Western Philosophy |
| School | Nominalism |
| Institutions | University of Paris |
|
Main interests
|
Logic, natural philosophy, theology |
|
Notable ideas
|
Theory of impetus |
|
Influenced
|
|
Jean Buridan (French: [byʁidɑ̃]; Latin: Johannes Buridanus; c. 1295 – 1363) was a French priest who sowed the seeds of the Copernican revolution in Europe. He developed the concept of impetus, the first step toward the modern concept of inertia, and an important development in the history of medieval science. His name is most familiar through the thought experiment known as Buridan's ass (a thought experiment which does not appear in his extant writings).
Born, most probably, in Béthune, France, Buridan studied and later taught at the University of Paris. Unusually, he spent his academic life in the faculty of arts, rather than obtaining the doctorate in Theology that typically prepared the way for a career in Philosophy. He further maintained his intellectual independence by remaining a secular cleric, rather than joining a religious Order. By 1340, his confidence had grown sufficiently for him to launch an attack on his predecessor, William of Ockham. Buridan also wrote on solutions to paradoxes such as the liar paradox. An ordinance of Louis XI of France in 1473, directed against the nominalists, prohibited the reading of his works.
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