Ian Hacking, Eminent Philosopher of Science and Much Else, Dies at 87
The New York Times Never limited by categories, his free-ranging intellect delved into physics, probability and anthropology, establishing him as a major thinker.
Ian Hacking, a Canadian philosopher widely hailed as a giant of modern thought for game-changing contributions to the philosophies of science, probability and mathematics, as well as his widely circulated insights on issues like race and mental health, died on May 10 at a retirement home in Toronto. He was 87.
His daughter Jane Hacking said the cause was heart failure.
In an academic career that included more than two decades as a professor in the philosophy department of the University of Toronto, following appointments at Cambridge and Stanford, Professor Hackings intellectual scope seemed to know no bounds. Because of his ability to span multiple academic fields, he was often described as a bridge builder.
Ian Hacking was a one-person interdisciplinary department all by himself, Cheryl Misak, a philosophy professor at the University of Toronto, said in a phone interview. Anthropologists, sociologists, historians and psychologists, as well as those working on probability theory and physics, took him to have important insights for their disciplines.
