Hans Albert, 102, German philosopher

[Lenona]

(Not to be confused with the Swiss-born engineer Hans Albert Einstein, who was almost 17 years older!)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Albert

https://orf.at/stories/3337550/

Translation:

The renowned Mannheim scientific theorist Hans Albert is dead. As his son announced, Albert died yesterday at the age of 102. He was considered a pioneer of critical rationalism, a scientific way of thinking characterized by the constant critical and empirical testing of theories. The aim is to get closer to the truth.

Albert was in line with Max Weber and Karl Popper and was internationally considered one of the most important representatives of his field. According to the University of Mannheim, he was awarded honorary doctorates from the universities of Linz, Athens, Kassel, Graz and Klagenfurt for his scientific work. In 2008 he also received the German Federal Cross of Merit, 1st Class.

The Cologne native held the chair for sociology and scientific studies at the University of Mannheim for more than a quarter of a century. Despite several calls to other universities, Albert remained at the University of Mannheim until his retirement.



https://www.diepresse.com/17767855/philosoph-hans-albert-mit-102-jahren-gestorben

Translation:

The German philosopher and sociologist Hans Albert was an important representative of critical rationalism. He shaped the Forum Alpbach for many years.

“All certainties in knowledge are self-fabricated and therefore worthless for the grasp of reality,” says Hans Albert’s “Treatise on Critical Reason” (1968). Which means: You can't say anything for sure. All theoretical structures that promise security are disguised theologies. And Hans Albert, a convinced atheist, didn't like them, not even when they appeared undogmatic. So he dedicated a critical discussion to Hans Küng called “The Misery of Theology”; the Pope Benedict XVI. He explained in “Joseph Ratzinger's Rescue of Christianity” that he was avoiding essential problems such as theodicy - the question of God's responsibility for evil.
Debates with Feyerabend

Albert initially strictly rejected the positivism that he had advocated at the beginning of his career as a thinker. And sided with Karl Popper, who founded critical rationalism. This school of thought never said that you can't or shouldn't say anything sensible, just that you can never be sure. You always have to be open to the fact that you have to change your theories. Because there are no final justifications. Albert used a lot of insight to reject the assumption that there were any, arguing clearly and patiently. For example with his friend Paul Feyerabend, whose “Anything goes” was again not rational enough for him. But he could also judge harshly: he accused Habermas of nonsense and called Gadamer a chatterbox.

In 1963, Hans Albert occupied the newly created chair for sociology and scientific studies at the University of Mannheim, and despite numerous calls, he remained there until his retirement. He received five honorary doctorates, three of which were Austrian (Linz, Graz, Klagenfurt). He was also important for Austria's intellectual scene because he shaped the Forum Alpbach for years as the main scientific advisor. There he brought together different minds from Popper to Hayek, from Konrad Lorenz to Imre Lakatos.

Hans Albert remained agile in his thinking until the end. And clear in expression. In an interview on his 100th birthday, the “Frankfurter Rundschau” asked him what the difference was between him and Popper. “I've lived longer, but I can't help it,” said Hans Albert. He has now died at the age of 102.

https://www.uni-mannheim.de/en/news/hans-albert-is-100-years-old/
(tribute from 2021)

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/52357.Hans_Albert

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&sca_esv=576236845&q=hans+albert+philosopher&tbm=vid&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjD0q7N34-CAxUbEVkFHRF2CjMQ0pQJegQICxAB&biw=1920&bih=955&dpr=1
(videos)