Personal Life Experiences as Examples of History of Science in the Philosophy of Michael Polanyi

Abstract

Michael Polanyi was born around the turn of the 20th century, and later he became a member of the émigré scientists who gained reputation outside of Hungary, alongside such famous physicists as Eugene Wigner, Leo Szilard or Theodore von Kármán. It is not only difficult to give an overview of his work because he carried out wide-ranging research in the field of adsorption, the study of the structure of materials and reaction mechanism, but also, because in 1948, he finished his Berlin and Manchester based career in chemistry spanning over several decades, and he started his career as a philosopher first in Manchester, and later in Oxford. This is the most notable change biographies do not fail to emphasise. Through an interest in his research in natural sciences, it becomes apparent though that right from the beginning to end, there were several fresh starts in Polanyi’s career, be it a change of profession, a change of research area within chemistry, not to mention that his career in chemistry evolved at the interface of chemistry and physics in a period when the foundations of modern physics were being laid. What could seem as a success story without failures from a broader perspective, taking a closer look would let one see the problems, the lost debates, a lack of sufficient interest and the underestimation of results. What makes it informative to get acquainted with Polanyi’s work as a chemist and philosopher, is that in his works of philosophy, he reflects on certain painful aspects of his scientific career. In my paper I attempt to present these experiences which contributed to the evolution of his insights into philosophy of science. Preceding that, I seek to reveal the main influences that shaped Polanyi’s intellectual disposition and attitude as a thinker.