January 14

George Berkeley (1685–1753) was a central figure in early modern philosophy, renowned for his doctrine of immaterialism, which asserted that objects exist only when perceived. In his works A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge and Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, he challenged materialist and skeptical philosophies of his time. Serving as Bishop of Cloyne, he also wrote on theology and education, advocating for the integration of faith and reason. Berkeley's emphasis on perception influenced later empiricists, including David Hume, and his ideas continue to spark debate in metaphysics and epistemology. His writings laid important groundwork for modern discussions on consciousness and reality.

Kurt Gödel, born in 1906 in Austria-Hungary, was a prodigious mathematical logician whose incompleteness theorems revolutionized the foundations of mathematics. He demonstrated that in any consistent formal system there exist true statements that cannot be proven within the system. Gödel joined the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, forging a close friendship with Albert Einstein. His work extended to set theory, proof theory, and philosophy of mathematics, influencing fields from computer science to epistemology. Gödel's life was marked by intense intellectual curiosity and struggles with mental health. He died in 1978, leaving a legacy as one of the greatest logicians in history.