Koyré, Alexandre

(1902-1964)

   philosopher

   Of Russian origin, Alexandre Koyré was born in Taganrog. He studied in Germany with Edmund Husserl and David Hilbert, then in Paris with henri bergson and Léon brunschvicg, but his own studies on the philosophy of science that he pursued at the École polytechnique des hautes études are profoundly original. He sought to reconstruct the intellectual context that allowed the emergence of new concepts and new scientific doctrines. His best-known work, Du monde clos à l'univers infini (1957), analyzes the substitution in modern scientific thought of a limitless universe for a hierarchical and infinite cosmos, and forges a new conception of reason. Koyré's works are close to those of gas-ton bachelard, georges canguilhem, and michel foucault (Études galiléennes, 1940; Études newtoni-ennes, 1964).