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Noam Chomsky

On a visit to Vancouver, British Columbia in 2004

Born December 7, 1928

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United

States

Other names Avram NoamChomsky

Alma mater University ofPennsylvania (B.A.)

1949, (M.A.) 1951, (Ph.D.) 1955

Era 20th / 21st-century philosophy

Region Western philosophy

School Generative linguistics, Analytic

philosophy

Institutions MIT (1955present)

Main interests Linguistics

Metalinguistics

Psychology

Philosophy of language

Philosophy of mind

PoliticsEthics

Notable ideas

Influences

Influenced

Noam ChomskyFromWikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Avram Noam Chomsky(/nom tmski/; born

December 7, 1928) is an Americanlinguist,

philosopher,[20][21]cognitive scientist, logician,[22][23][24]

political commentator and activist. Sometimes describedas the "father of modern linguistics",[25][26]Chomsky is

also a major figure in analytic philosophy.[20]He has spent

most of his career at the Massachusetts Institute of

Technology (MIT), where he is currently Professor

Emeritus, and has authored over 100books. He has been

described as a prominent cultural figure, and was voted

the "world's top public intellectual" in a 2005 poll.[27]

Bornto a middle-class AshkenaziJewish family inPhiladelphia, Chomsky developed an early interest in

anarchism from relatives in New York City. He later

undertook studies in linguistics at theUniversity of

Pennsylvania, where he obtained his BA, MA, and PhD,

while from 1951 to 1955 he was appointed to Harvard

University's Society of Fellows. In 1955 he began work

at MIT, soonbecoming a significant figure in the field of

linguistics for his publications and lectures onthe subject.

He iscredited as the creator or co-creator of the

Chomsky hierarchy, the universal grammar theory, andthe ChomskySchtzenberger theorem. In 1967 he

gained public attention for his vocal opposition to U.S.

involvement in the Vietnam War, in part through his essay

The Responsibility of Intellectuals, and came to be

associated with the New Left while being arrested on

multiple occasions for his anti-war activism. While

expanding his work inlinguistics oversubsequent

decades, he also developed the propaganda model of

media criticism with Edward S. Herman. Following his

retirement fromactive teaching, hehas continued his vocalpublic activism, praising the Occupy movement for

example.

Chomsky has been a highly influential academic figure

throughout his career, and was cited within the field of

Arts and Humanities more often than any other living

scholar between 1980 and 1992. He was also the eighth

most cited scholar overall within the Arts and Humanities

Citation Index during the same period.[28][29][30][31]His

work has influenced fields such as artificial intelligence,

cognitive science, computer science, logic, mathematics,

music theory and analysis, political science, programming
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language theory and psychology.[30][31][32][33][34]Chomsky continues to be well known as a political activist,

and a leading critic of U.S. foreign policy, state capitalism, and the mainstream news media. Ideologically, he

aligns himself with anarcho-syndicalism and libertarian socialism.[35]

Contents

1 Early life

2 Rise to prominence

3 Linguistic theory

4 Political views

5 Debates

6 Personal life

7 Influence

8 Academic achievements, awards, and honors

9 Bibliography

10 See also

11 References

12 External links

Early lifeChildhood: 192845

Avram Noam Chomsky was born on December 7, 1928, in the affluent East Oak Lane neighborhood of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[36]His father was the Ukrainian-born William "Zev" Chomsky, an Ashkenazi Jew

who had fled to the United States in 1913 and his mother was Elsie Simonofsky. Having studied at Johns

Hopkins University, his father went on to become school principal of the Congregation Mikveh Israel religious

school, and in 1924 was appointed to the faculty at Gratz College in Philadelphia. Independently, William

researched Medieval Hebrew, and would publish a series of books on the subject. William's wife, Elsie, was

born in Belarus. They met at Mikveh Israel, where both taught Hebrew language classes.[37]Described as a

"very warm, gentle, and engaging" individual, William placed a great emphasis on educating people so that they

would be "well integrated, free and independent in their thinking, and eager to participate in making life more

meaningful and worthwhile for all", a view subsequently adopted by his son.[38]

Noam was the Chomsky family's first child. His younger brother,

David Eli Chomsky, was born five years later. The brothers

remained close, although David was more easy-going while

Noam could be very competitive.[40]Chomsky's parents' first

language was Yiddish, but Chomsky said it was "taboo" in his

family to speak it. Unlike her husband, Elsie spoke "ordinary

New York English".[41]The brothers were raised in this Jewish

environment, being taught Hebrew and regularly discussing the

"What motivated his [political] interests? Apowerful curiosity, exposure to divergentopinions, and an unorthodox education

have all been given as answers to thisquestion. He was clearly struck by theobvious contradictions between his ownreadings and mainstream press reports.The measurement of the distance betweenthe realities presented by these two
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Biographer Robert F. Barsky, 1997.[39]

Anarcho-syndicalist Rudolf Rocker (left) and English

democratic socialist George Orwell (right) were both

strong influences on the young Chomsky. Their work

convinced him that an anarcho-syndicalist society

was both possible and desirable.

political theories of Zionism; the family were particularly

influenced by the Left Zionist writings of Ahad Ha'am.[40]Being

Jewish, Noam Chomsky faced anti-semitism as a child,

particularly from the Irish and German communities living in

Philadelphia; he recalls German "beer parties" celebrating the fall

of Paris to the Nazis.[42][43]

Noam described his parents as "normal Roosevelt Democrats", having a centre-left position on the politicalspectrum, but he was exposed to far left politics through other members of the family, a number of whom were

socialists involved in the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.[44]He was influenced largely by his

uncle who owned a newspaper stand in New York City where Jewish leftists came to debate the issues of the

day.[43][45]Whenever visiting his relatives in New York City, Chomsky frequented left-wing and anarchist

bookstores, voraciously reading political literature.[43][45]He later described his discovery of anarchism as a

"lucky accident", allowing him to become critical of other radical left-wing ideologies, namely Marxism-

Leninism.[46]Chomsky's primary education was at Oak Lane Country Day School, an independent institution

that focused on allowing its pupils to pursue their own interests in a non-competitive atmosphere. It was here

that he wrote his first article, aged 10, on the spread of fascism, following the fall of Barcelona in the Spanish

Civil War. From the age of 12 or 13, he identified more fully with anarchist politics. [47][48]Aged 12, he moved

on to secondary education at Central High School, where he joined various clubs and societies but was troubled

by the hierarchical and regimented method of teaching that they employed.[49]

University: 194555

Aged 16, in 1945 Chomsky embarked on a general

program of study at the University of Pennsylvania,

where his primary interest was in learning Arabic.Living at home, he funded his undergraduate degree

by teaching Hebrew.[50]Although dissatisfied with the

university's strict structure, he was encouraged to

continue by the Russian-born linguist Zellig Harris,

who convinced Chomsky to major in the subject.[51]

Chomsky's BA honor's thesis was titled

"Morphophonemics of Modern Hebrew", and revised

it for his MA thesis, which he attained at Penn in

1951; it would subsequently be published as abook.[52][53]From 1951 to 1955 he was named to

the Society of Fellows at Harvard University while

undertaking his doctoral research.[54]Being highly

critical of the established behaviourist currents in

linguistics, in 1954 he presented his ideas at lectures

given at the University of Chicago and Yale University.[55]In 1955 he was awarded his PhD from the University

of Pennsylvania for a thesis setting out his ideas on transformational grammar; it would be published in 1975 as

The Logical Structure of Linguistic Theory.[56]

In 1947, Chomsky entered into a romantic relationship with Carol Doris Schatz, whom he had known since they

were toddlers. They were married in 1949,[57]and remained together until her death in 2008.[58]They

considered moving to Israel, and in 1953 spent six weeks at the HaZore'a kibbutz; although enjoying himself,

sources, and the evaluation of why such agap exists, remained a passion forChomsky."
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Chomsky was appalled by the Jewish nationalism and anti-Arab racism he encountered in the country, and the

pro-Stalinist trend that he thought pervaded the kibbutz's leftist community.[59]

On visits to New York City, Chomsky frequented the office of Yiddish anarchist journal Freie Arbeiter

Stimme, becoming enamored with the work of contributor Rudolf Rocker, whose work introduced him to the

link between anarchism and classical liberalism.[60]Other political thinkers whose work Chomsky read included

the anarchist Diego Abad de Santilln, democratic socialists George Orwell, Bertrand Russell, and Dwight

Macdonald, and works by Marxists Karl Liebknecht, Karl Korsch, and Rosa Luxemburg.[61]His readingsconvinced him of the desirability of an anarcho-syndicalist society, and he became fascinated by the anarcho-

syndicalist communes set up during the Spanish Civil War documented in Orwell'sHomage to Catalonia

(1938).[62]He avidly read leftist journalPolitics, remarking that it "answered to and developed" his interest in

anarchism,[63]as well as the periodicalLiving Marxism, published by council communist Paul Mattick.

Although rejecting its Marxist basis, Chomsky was heavily influenced by council communism, voraciously

reading articles inLiving Marxismwritten by Antonie Pannekoek.[64]He was greatly interested in the

Marlenite ideas of the Leninist League, an anti-Stalinist Marxist-Leninist group, sharing their views that the

Second World War was orchestrated by Western capitalists and the Soviet Union's "state capitalists" to crush

Europe's proletariat.[65]

Early career: 19551966

In 1955, Chomsky obtained a job as an assistant professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),

spending half his time on a mechanical translation project and the other half teaching linguistics and

philosophy.[66]He later described MIT as "a pretty free and open place, open to experimentation and without

rigid requirements. It was just perfect for someone of my idiosyncratic interests and work."[67]In 1957 MIT

promoted him to the position of assistant professor, while from 195758 he was also employed by New York

City's Columbia University as a visiting professor.[68]That same year, the Chomsky's first child was born,[69]

and he published his first work on linguistics, Syntactic Structures, a book that radically opposed the dominant

Harris-Bloomfield trend in the field. The response to Chomsky's ideas ranged from indifference to hostility, and

his work proved divisive and caused "significant upheaval" in the discipline.[70]Linguist John Lyons later

asserted that it "revolutionized the scientific study of language."[71]From 195859 Chomsky was a National

Science Foundation fellow at Princeton University's Institute for Advanced Study.[72]

In 1959 he attracted further attention for his review of B.F. Skinner's 1957 book Verbal Behaviorin the

ournalLanguage,[73]

in which he argued that Skinner ignored the role of human creativity in linguistics.[74]

Becoming an "established intellectual",[75]with his colleague Morris Halle, he founded the MIT's Graduate

Program in linguistics, and in 1961 he was made professor of foreign language and linguistics, thereby gaining

academic tenure.[76]He was appointed plenary speaker at the Ninth International Congress of Linguists, held in

1962 at Cambridge, Massachusetts; the event established him as the de factospokesperson of American

linguistics.[77]He continued to publish his linguistic ideas throughout the decade, asAspects of the Theory of

Syntax(1966), Topics in the Theory of Generative Grammar(1966), and Cartesian Linguistics: A

Chapter in the History of Linguistic Thought(1966).[78]Along with Halle, he also edited the Studies in

Language Series of books for Harper and Row.[79]He continued to receive academic recognition and honors

for his work, in 1966 visiting a variety of Californian institutions, first as the Linguistics Society of America

Professor at the University of California, and then as the Beckman Professor at the University of California,

Berkeley.[80]His Beckman lectures would be assembled and published asLanguage and Mindin 1968.[81]
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Chomsky on the Vietnam War.[82]

Rise to prominence

Anti-Vietnam War activism: 19671975

1967 marked Chomsky's entry into the public debate on the

United States' foreign policy.[83]In February he published an

influential essay in The New York Review of Bookstitled TheResponsibility of Intellectuals, in which he criticized the

country's involvement in the Vietnam War.[81][84]He expanded

on his argument to produce his first political book,American

Power and the New Mandarins,which was published in 1969

and soon established him at the forefront of American dissent.[85]

In 1971 he gave the Bertrand Russell Memorial Lectures in

Cambridge, which were published asProblems of Knowledge

and Freedomlater that year, while other political books at the

time includedAt War with Asia(1970) andFor Reasons of

State(1973).[86]Coming to be associated with the American

New Left movement,[87]he nevertheless thought little of

prominent New Left intellectuals Herbert Marcuse and Erich Fromm, and preferred the company of activists to

intellectuals.[88]Although he had initially arisen to attention for his political views in The New York Review of

Books, throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, he was virtually ignored by the mainstream press. [89]

Along with his writings, Chomsky also became actively involved in left-wing activism. Refusing to pay half his

taxes, in 1967 he publicly supported students who refused the draft, and was arrested for being part of an anti-

war teach-in outside the Pentagon.[90]

Supporting the student protest movement, he gave many lectures tostudent activist groups, though questioned the objectives of the 1968 student protests.[91]Along with colleague

Louis Kampf, he also began running undergraduate courses on politics at MIT, independent of the conservative-

dominated political science department.[92]His public talks often generated considerable controversy,

particularly when he criticized actions of the Israeli government and military.[93]His political views came under

attack from right-wing and centrist figures, the most prominent of whom was Alan Dershowitz; Chomsky

considered Dershowitz "a complete liar" and accused him of actively misrepresenting his position on issues.[94]

As a result of his anti-war activism, Chomsky was arrested on multiple occasions, and U.S. President Richard

Nixon included him on his Enemies' List.[95]He was aware of the potential repercussions of his activism, and so

his wife began training to become an academic in order to support the family in the event of Chomsky's

unemployment or imprisonment.[96]

Although under some pressure to do so, MIT refused to fire him due to his influential standing in the field of

linguistics.[97]His work in this area continued to gain international recognition: in 1967 the University of London

awarded him an honorary D. Litt while the University of Chicago gave him an honorary D.H.L.[98]In 1970,

Loyola University and Swarthmore College also awarded him honorary D.H.L.'s, as did Bard College in 1971,

Delhi University in 1972, and the University of Massachusetts in 1973. [99]In 1974 he became a corresponding

fellow of the British Academy.

[100]

Chomsky continued to write on the subject, publishing Studies onSemantics in Generative Grammar(1972).[97]In 1971 he carried out a televised interview with French

"[I]t does not require very far-reaching,specialized knowledge to perceive that theUnited States was invading South Vietnam.And, in fact, to take apart the system ofillusions and deception which functions toprevent understanding of contemporaryreality [is] not a task that requiresextraordinary skill or understanding. Itrequires the kind of normal scepticism andwillingness to apply one's analytical skillsthat almost all people have and that theycan exercise."
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Chomsky at the World Social Forum

(Porto Alegre) in 2003

philosopher Michel Foucault on Dutch television; he largely agreed with Foucault's ideas, but was critical of

post-modernism and French philosophy generally, lambasting France as having "a highly parochial and

remarkably illiterate culture."[101]

Work on the media: 19761989

Throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, Chomsky's publications expanded and clarified his earlier work,

addressing his critics and updating his grammatical theory.[102]

In 1979, Chomsky and Herman published the two-volume The Political Economy of Human Rights,

comparing U.S. media reactions to the Cambodian genocide and the Indonesian occupation of East Timor.

They argued that because Indonesia was a U.S. ally, U.S. media ignored the East Timorian situation while

focusing on that in Cambodia, a U.S. enemy.[103]The following year, Steven Lukas wrote an article for the

Times Higher Education Supplementaccusing Chomsky of betraying his anarchist ideals and acting as an

apologist for Cambodian leader Pol Pot. Although Laura J. Summers and Robin Woodsworth Carlsen replied

to the article, arguing that Lukas completely misunderstood Chomsky and Herman's work, Chomsky himself did

not. The controversy damaged his reputation.[104]Chomsky maintained that his critics printed lies about him todiscredit his reputation.[105]

Although Chomsky had long publicly criticised Nazism and totalitarianism more generally, his commitment to

freedom of speech led him to defend the right of French historian Robert Faurisson to advocate a position

widely characterised as Holocaust denial. Chomsky's plea for the historian's freedom of speech would be

published as the preface to Faurisson's 1980 bookMmoire en dfense contre ceux qui m'accusent de

alsifier l'histoire.[106]Chomsky was widely condemned for defending Faurisson.[107]France's mainstream

press accused Chomsky of being a Holocaust denier himself, and refused to publish his rebuttals to their

accusations.[108]

The Faurrison Affair had a lasting, damaging effect on Chomsky's career;[107]

Werner Cohn'sPartners in Hate: Noam Chomsky and the Holocaust Denierscontained numerous falsified claims.[109]

Increased political activism: 1990present

In the 1990s, Chomsky embraced political activism to a greater degree than before.[110]

His far-reaching criticisms of U.S. foreign policy and the legitimacy of

U.S. power have raised controversy.[111][112]Chomsky has received

death threats because of his criticisms of U.S. foreign policy.[113]Hehas often received undercover police protection at MIT and when

speaking on the Middle East, although he has refused uniformed

police protection.[114]The Electronic Intifada website claims that the

Anti-Defamation League "spied on" Chomsky's appearances, and

quotes Chomsky as being unsurprised at that discovery or the use of

what Chomsky claims is "fantasy material" provided to Alan

Dershowitz for debating him. Amused, Chomsky compares the

ADL's reports to FBI files.[115]

Chomsky resides in Lexington, Massachusetts, and travels, giving lectures on politics and linguistics.

Linguistic theory
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Different grammatical deep structures of a sentence

The basis to Chomsky's linguistic theory is that the principles underlying the structure of language are biologically

determined in the human mind and hence genetically transmitted.[116]He therefore argues that all humans share

the same underlying linguistic structure, irrespective of socio-cultural difference.[117]In this he opposes the

radical behaviourist psychology of B.F. Skinner, instead arguing that human language is unlike modes of

communication used by any other animal species.[118]

Chomskyan linguistics, beginning with his Syntactic Structures, a distillation of hisLogical Structure of

Linguistic Theory(1955, 75), challenges structural linguistics and introduces transformational grammar.[119]

This approach takes utterances (sequences of words) to have a syntax characterized by a formal grammar; in

particular, a context-free grammar extended with transformational rules.

Perhaps his most influential and time-tested contribution to the field is the claim that modeling knowledge of

language using a formal grammar accounts for the "productivity" or "creativity" of language. In other words, a

formal grammar of a language can explain the ability of a hearer-speaker to produce and interpret an infinite

number of utterances, including novel ones, with a limited set of grammatical rules and a finite set of terms. He

has always acknowledged his debt to Pini for his modern notion of an explicit generative grammar, although it

is also related to rationalist ideas of a priori knowledge.

A popular misconception is that Chomsky proved that language is entirely innate, and that he discovered a

"universal grammar" (UG). Chomsky simply observed that while a human baby and a kitten are both capable of

inductive reasoning, if they are exposed to exactly the same linguistic data, the human will always acquire the

ability to understand and produce language, while the kitten will never acquire either ability. Chomsky labeled

whatever the relevant capacity the human has that the cat lacks as the language acquisition device (LAD), and

he suggested that one of the tasks for linguistics should be to determine what the LAD is and what constraints it

imposes on the range of possible human languages. The universal features that would result from these

constraints are often termed "universal grammar" or UG.[120]Though Chomsky generated the universal grammar

theory with the belief that language is uniquely human, a series of studies from various laboratories have shownthe existence of acquired language in several great ape species, including common

chimpanzees,[121][122][123][124][125][126][127]bonobos,[127][128]gorillas,[129]and orangutans.[130]Thus, great

apes at least partially possess whatever mental functions might underlie the LAD, and are therefore important

species of study for exploring the neural basis of language.

Chomsky's ideas have had a strong influence on researchers of language acquisition in children, though many

researchers in this area such as Elizabeth Bates[131]and Michael Tomasello[132]argue very strongly against

Chomsky's theories, and instead advocate emergentist or connectionist theories, explaining language with a

number of general processing mechanisms in the brain that interact with the extensive and complex social

environment in which language is used and learned.

Generative grammar

The Chomskyan approach towards syntax,

often termed generative grammar, studies

grammar as a body of knowledge

possessed by language users. Since the

1960s, Chomsky has maintained that much

of this knowledge is innate, implying thatchildren need only learn certain parochial

features of their native languages.[133]The

innate body of linguistic knowledge is often
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termed universal grammar. From Chomsky's perspective, the strongest evidence for the existence of Universal

Grammar is simply the fact that children successfully acquire their native languages in so little time. Furthermore,

he argues that there is an enormous gap between the linguistic stimuli to which children are exposed and the rich

linguistic knowledge they attain (the "poverty of the stimulus" argument). The knowledge of Universal Grammar

would serve to bridge that gap.

Chomsky's theories have been immensely influential within linguistics, but they have also received criticism. One

recurring criticism of the Chomskyan variety of generative grammar is that it is Anglocentric and Eurocentric,

and that often linguists working in this tradition have a tendency to base claims about Universal Grammar on a

very small sample of languages, sometimes just one. Initially, the Eurocentrism was exhibited in an overemphasis

on the study of English. However, hundreds of different languages have now received at least some attention

within Chomskyan linguistic analyses.[134][135][136][137][138]In spite of the diversity of languages that have been

characterized by UG derivations, critics continue to argue that the formalisms within Chomskyan linguistics are

Anglocentric and misrepresent the properties of languages that are different from English.[139][140][141]Thus,

Chomsky's approach has been criticized as a form of linguistic imperialism.[142]In addition, Chomskyan linguists

rely heavily on the intuitions of native speakers regarding which sentences of their languages are well-formed.

This practice has been criticized on general methodological grounds. Some psychologists and psycholinguists,

though sympathetic to Chomsky's overall program, have argued that Chomskyan linguists pay insufficient

attention to experimental data from language processing, with the consequence that their theories are not

psychologically plausible. Other critics (see language learning) have questioned whether it is necessary to posit

Universal Grammar to explain child language acquisition, arguing that domain-general learning mechanisms are

sufficient.

Today there are many different branches of generative grammar. One can view grammatical frameworks such as

head-driven phrase structure grammar, lexical functional grammar, and combinatory categorial grammar as

broadly Chomskyan and generative in orientation, but with significant differences in execution.

Chomsky hierarchy

Chomsky is famous for investigating various kinds of formal languages and whether or not they might be capable

of capturing key properties of human language. His Chomsky hierarchy partitions formal grammars into classes,

or groups, with increasing expressive power, i.e., each successive class can generate a broader set of formal

languages than the one before. Interestingly, Chomsky argues that modeling some aspects of human language

requires a more complex formal grammar (as measured by the Chomsky hierarchy) than modeling others. For

example, while a regular language is powerful enough to model English morphology, it is not powerful enough to

model English syntax. In addition to being relevant in linguistics, the Chomsky hierarchy has also become

important in computer science (especially in compiler construction and automata theory).[143]Indeed, there is anequivalence between the Chomsky language hierarchy and the different kinds of automata. Thus theorems about

languages are often dealt with as either languages (grammars) or automata.

Political views

Chomsky's political views have changed little since his childhood.[144]His ideological position revolves around

"nourishing the libertarian and creative character of the human being",[144]and he has described his beliefs as

"fairly traditional anarchist ones, with origins in the Enlightenment and classical liberalism."[145]

He has praisedlibertarian socialism,[146]and has described himself as an anarcho-syndicalist.[147]He is a member of the

Campaign for Peace and Democracy and the Industrial Workers of the World international union.[148]Chomsky
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is also a member of the interim consultative committee of the International Organization for a Participatory

Society, which he describes as having the potential to "...carry us a long way towards unifying the many

initiatives here and around the world and molding them into a powerful and effective force."[149][150]

He advocates popular struggle for greater democracy.[151]He has stated his opposition to ruling elites, among

them institutions like the IMF, World Bank, and GATT.[152]

Chomsky asserts that authority, unless justified, is inherently illegitimate, and that the burden of proof is on thosein authority. If this burden can't be met, the authority in question should be dismantled. Authority for its own

sake is inherently unjustified. An example given by Chomsky of a legitimate authority is that exerted by an adult

to prevent a young child from wandering into traffic.[153]He contends that there is little moral difference between

chattel slavery and renting one's self to an owner or "wage slavery". He feels that it is an attack on personal

integrity that undermines individual freedom. He holds that workers should own and control their

workplace.[154]

Chomsky is critical of both the American state capitalist system[155]and the authoritarian branches of socialism.

He argues that libertarian socialist values are the proper extension of classical liberalism to an advancedindustrial context,[156]and that society should be highly organized and based on democratic control of

communities and work places. He views the radical humanist ideas of his two major influences, Bertrand Russell

and John Dewey, as "rooted in the Enlightenment and classical liberalism, while retaining their revolutionary

character."[157]

Chomsky has strongly criticized the foreign policy of the United States. He claims double standards in a foreign

policy preaching democracy and freedom for all while allying itself with non-democratic and repressive

organizations and states such as Chile under Augusto Pinochet and argues that this results in massive human

rights violations. He often argues that America's intervention in foreign nations including secret aid the U.S.gave to the Contras in Nicaragua, an event he has been critical of fits any standard description of

terrorism,[158]including "official definitions in the US Code and Army Manuals in the early 1980s."[159][160]

Before its collapse, Chomsky also condemned Soviet imperialism; for example in 1986 during a

question/answer following a lecture he gave at Universidad Centroamericana in Nicaragua, when challenged

about how he could "talk about North American imperialism and Russian imperialism in the same breath,"

Chomsky responded: "One of the truths about the world is that there are two superpowers, one a huge power

which happens to have its boot on your neck; another, a smaller power which happens to have its boot on other

people's necks. I think that anyone in the Third World would be making a grave error if they succumbed to

illusions about these matters."[161]Martha Nussbaum criticizes Chomsky for failing to condemn atrocities by

leftist insurgents because "for some leftists one should not criticize one's friends, that solidarity is more

important than ethical correctness."[162]

Chomsky has a broad view of free-speech rights, especially in the mass media, and opposes censorship. He has

stated that "with regard to freedom of speech there are basically two positions: you defend it vigorously for

views you hate, or you reject it and prefer Stalinist/fascist standards".[163]With reference to the United States

diplomatic cables leak, Chomsky suggested that "perhaps the most dramatic revelation ... is the bitter hatred of

democracy that is revealed both by the U.S. Government Hillary Clinton, others and also by the diplomatic

service."[164]Chomsky refuses to take legal action against those who may have libeled him and prefers to

counter libels through open letters in newspapers. One example of this approach is his response to an article byEmma Brockes in The Guardianat the end of October 2005, which alleged that he had denied the Srebrenica

massacre in 1995.[165][166][167]At issue was Chomsky's attitude to the writings of journalist Diana Johnstone on

the subject.[168]His complaint prompted The Guardianto publish an apologetic correction and to withdraw the
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article from the paper's website,[169]which remains available on his own website.[170]Nick Cohen has criticised

Chomsky for frequently making overly critical statements about Western governments, especially the US, and

for allegedly refusing to retract his speculations when facts become available that disprove them. [171]

Debates

Chomsky has been known to defend vigorously and debate his views and opinions, in philosophy, linguistics(Linguistics Wars), and politics.[20]He has had notable debates with Jean Piaget,[172]Michel Foucault,[173]

William F. Buckley, Jr.,[174]Christopher Hitchens,[175][176][177][178][179]George Lakoff,[180]Richard Perle,[181]

Hilary Putnam,[182]Willard Van Orman Quine,[183][184]John Maynard Smith,[185]and Alan Dershowitz,[186]to

name a few. The Guardiansaid of Chomsky's debating ability, "His boldness and clarity infuriates opponents

academe is crowded with critics who have made twerps of themselves taking him on."[187][188]In response to

his speaking style being criticized as boring, Chomsky said, "I'm a boring speaker and I like it that way. ... I

doubt that people are attracted to whatever the persona is. ... People are interested in the issues, and they're

interested in the issues because they are important."[189]"We don't want to be swayed by superficial eloquence,

by emotion and so on."[190]

Personal life

Chomsky endeavors to keep his family life strictly separate from his political activism and career, [191]and

considers himself "scrupulous at keeping my politics out of the classroom."[192]He is uninterested in

appearances and the fame that his work has brought him.[193]He also has little interest in art and music, though

he does enjoy reading non-fiction literature.[194]

Chomsky is known for his "dry, laconic wit", although he has attracted controversy for labeling established

political and academic figures with terms like "corrupt", "fascist", and "fraudulent".[195]When asked if he is an

atheist, Chomsky replied "What is it that I'm supposed to not believe in? Until you can answer that question I

can't tell you whether I'm an atheist."[196]

Chomsky was married to Carol Doris Schatz (Chomsky) from 1949 until her death in 2008. They had 3

children together: Aviva, Diane and Harry. [197]

Influence

Chomsky's legacy is as both a "leader in the field" of linguistics and "a figure of enlightenment and inspiration" for

political dissenters.[198]Linguist John Lyons remarked that within a few decades of publication, Chomskyan

linguistics had become "the most dynamic and influential" school of thought in the field.[199]Chomskyan models

have been used as a theoretical basis in various fields of study. The Chomsky hierarchy is often taught in

fundamental computer science courses as it confers insight into the various types of formal languages. This

hierarchy can also be discussed in mathematical terms[200]and has generated interest among mathematicians,

particularly combinatorialists. Some arguments in evolutionary psychology are derived from his research

results.[201]
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Chomsky's work in linguistics has had implications for modern psychology.[33]Nim Chimpsky, a chimpanzee

who was the subject of a study in animal language acquisition at Columbia University, was named after

Chomsky in reference to his view of language acquisition as a uniquely human ability. The 1984 Nobel Prize

laureate in Medicine and Physiology, Niels Kaj Jerne, used Chomsky's generative model to explain the human

immune system, equating "components of a generative grammar ... with various features of protein structures".

The title of Jerne's Stockholm Nobel Lecture was "The Generative Grammar of the Immune System".[202]

Computer scientist Donald Knuth read Syntactic Structuresduring his honeymoon and was influenced by it. "I

must admit to taking a copy of Noam Chomsky's Syntactic Structuresalong with me on my honeymoon in1961 ... Here was a marvelous thing: a mathematical theory of language in which I could use a computer

programmer's intuition!"[203]

Academic achievements, awards, and honors

In early 1969, he delivered the John Locke Lectures at Oxford University; in January 1970, the Bertrand

Russell Memorial Lecture at University of Cambridge; in 1972, the Nehru Memorial Lecture in New Delhi; in

1977, the Huizinga Lecture in Leiden; in 1988 the Massey Lectures at the University of Toronto, titled

"Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies"; in 1997, The Davie Memorial Lecture on

Academic Freedom in Cape Town,[204]in 2011, the Rickman Godlee Lecture at University College, London[205]many others.[206]

Chomsky has received many honorary degrees from universities around the world, including from the following:

University of London

University of Chicago

Loyola University Chicago

Swarthmore College

University of Delhi

Bard College

University of Massachusetts Amherst

University of Pennsylvania

University of St. Andrews

Georgetown University

Amherst College

University of Cambridge

University of Colorado[207]

University of Buenos Aires

McGill University

Rovira i Virgili University

Columbia University

Villanova UniversityUniversity of Connecticut

University of Maine

Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Western_Ontariohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scuola_Normale_Superiore_di_Pisahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Mainehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Connecticuthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villanova_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rovira_i_Virgili_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McGill_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Buenos_Aireshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Coloradohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Cambridgehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amherst_Collegehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgetown_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_St._Andrewshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Pennsylvaniahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Massachusetts_Amhersthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bard_Collegehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Delhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swarthmore_Collegehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loyola_University_Chicagohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chicagohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Londonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honorary_degreehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_College,_Londonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Townhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Torontohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massey_Lectureshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leidenhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Delhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jawaharlal_Nehruhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Cambridgehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Locke_Lectureshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Knuthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Kaj_Jernehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_language_acquisitionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nim_Chimpsky


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He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, and the

American Philosophical Society. In addition, he is a member of other professional and learned societies in the

United States and abroad, and is a recipient of the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award of the American

Psychological Association, the Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences, the Helmholtz Medal, the Dorothy Eldridge

Peacemaker Award, the 1999 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Computer and Cognitive Science, and others.[210]

He is twice winner of The Orwell Award, granted by The National Council of Teachers of English for

"Distinguished Contributions to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language" (in 1987 and 1989).[211]

He is a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Department of Social Sciences.[212]

In 2005, Chomsky received an honorary fellowship from the Literary and Historical Society.[213]In 2007,

Chomsky received The Uppsala University (Sweden) Honorary Doctor's degree in commemoration of Carolus

Linnaeus.[214]In February 2008, he received the President's Medal from the Literary and Debating Society of

the National University of Ireland, Galway.[215]Since 2009 he is an honorary member of IAPTI.[216]

In 2010, Chomsky received the Erich Fromm Prize in Stuttgart, Germany.[217]In April 2010, Chomsky became

the third scholar to receive the University of Wisconsin's A.E. Havens Center's Award for Lifetime Contribution

to Critical Scholarship.[218]

Chomsky has an Erds number of four.[219]

Chomsky was voted the leading living public intellectual in The 2005 Global Intellectuals Poll conducted by the

British magazineProspect. He reacted, saying "I don't pay a lot of attention to polls".[220]In a list compiled by

the magazineNew Statesmanin 2006, he was voted seventh in the list of "Heroes of our time".[221]

University of Western Ontario

University of Toronto

Harvard University

University of Chile

University of Bologna

University of La Frontera

University of Calcutta

National University of Colombia

Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Santo Domingo Institute of Technology

Uppsala University

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

University of Cyprus

Central Connecticut State UniversityNational Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)

Peking University[208]

National Tsing Hua University[209]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Tsing_Hua_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Autonomous_University_of_Mexicohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commencement_at_CCSUhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Cyprushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_and_Kapodistrian_University_of_Athenshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uppsala_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santo_Domingo_Institute_of_Technologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vrije_Universiteit_Brusselhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_University_of_Colombiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Calcuttahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_La_Fronterahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Bolognahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chilehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Torontohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Western_Ontariohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Statesmanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prospect_(magazine)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_2005_Global_Intellectuals_Pollhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_intellectualhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erd%C5%91s_numberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Frommhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAPTIhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_University_of_Ireland,_Galwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolus_Linnaeushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedenhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uppsala_Universityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_and_Historical_Society_(University_College_Dublin)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serbian_Academy_of_Sciences_and_Artshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orwell_Awardhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Prizehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Psychological_Associationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Philosophical_Societyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_National_Academy_of_Scienceshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Academy_of_Arts_and_Sciences


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TheMegachile chomskyiholotype

Actor Viggo Mortensen with avant-garde guitarist Buckethead dedicated their 2006 album, called

Pandemoniumfromamerica, to Chomsky.[222]

On January 22, 2010, a special honorary concert for Chomsky was given at Kresge Auditorium at

MIT.[223][224]The concert, attended by Chomsky and dozens of his family and friends, featured music

composed by Edward Manukyan and speeches by Chomsky's colleagues, including David Pesetsky of MIT

and Gennaro Chierchia, head of the linguistics department at Harvard

University.

In June 2011, Chomsky was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize, which

cited his "...unfailing courage, critical analysis of power and promotion

of human rights."[225]

In 2011, Chomsky was inducted into IEEE Intelligent Systems' AI's

Hall of Fame for the "significant contributions to the field of AI and

intelligent systems".[226][227]

In 2013, a newly described species of bee was named after him:

egachile chomskyi.[228]

Bibliography

Filmography

Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media, Director: Mark Achbar and Peter

Wintonick (1992)

Last Party 2000, Director: Rebecca Chaiklin and Donovan Leitch (2001)

Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times, Director: John Junkerman (2002)

Distorted Morality America's War On Terror?, Director: John Junkerman (2003)

Noam Chomsky: Rebel Without a Pause(TV), Director: Will Pascoe (2003)

The Corporation, Directors: Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott; Writer: Joel Bakan (2003)

Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land, Directors: Sut Jhally and Bathsheba Ratzkoff (2004)

On Power, Dissent and Racism: A discussion with Noam Chomsky, Journalist: Nicolas Rossier;

Producers: Eli Choukri, Baraka Productions (2004)

Lake of Fire, Director: Tony Kaye (2006)

American Feud: A History of Conservatives and Liberals, Director: Richard Hall (2008)

Chomsky & Cie, Director: Olivier Azam (out in 2008)

An Inconvenient Tax, Director: Christopher P. Marshall (out in 2009)

The Money Fix,Director: Alan Rosenblith (2009)

Pax Americana and the Weaponization of Space, Director: Denis Delestrac (2010)

Article 12: Waking up in a surveillance society, Director: Juan Manuel Biai (2010)

In 2012, Chomsky performed a deadpan cameo role in "MIT Gangnam Style", a parody of the

"Gangnam Style" music video.[229]Also known informally as "Chomsky Style";[230]the video was

described as the "Best Gan nam St le Parod Yet" b The Hu in ton Post[230]and it became a multi-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Posthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_videohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangnam_Stylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parodyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT_Gangnam_Stylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cameo_appearancehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadpanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denis_Delestrachttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Americana_and_the_Weaponization_of_Spacehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Inconvenient_Taxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Olivier_Azam_(director)&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Feud:_A_History_of_Conservatives_and_Liberalshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Kaye_(director)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_of_Fire_(film)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathsheba_Ratzkoffhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sut_Jhallyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace,_Propaganda_%26_the_Promised_Landhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joel_Bakanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennifer_Abbotthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Corporation_(film)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Wintonickhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Achbarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manufacturing_Consent:_Noam_Chomsky_and_the_Mediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Megachile_chomskyi&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IEEE_Intelligent_Systemshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Peace_Prizehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gennaro_Chierchiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Pesetskyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Manukyanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kresge_Auditoriumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pandemoniumfromamericahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bucketheadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viggo_Mortensenhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holotypehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Megachile_chomskyi_holotype_-_ZooKeys-283-043-g004.jpeg


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See also

American philosophy

Axiom of categoricity

Chomskybot

"Colorless green ideas sleep furiously"

English studies

Knowledge worker

Listof American philosophers

Listof peace activistsListof important publications in computability

TheAnti-Chomsky Reader

References

Footnotes

million viewed "most popular" video on YouTube in its own right. (video link[231])

Is theMan Who Is Tall Happy?, Director: Michel Gondry (2013)

1. ^Safty 1994.

2. ^Noam Chomsky (September 22, 2011).Noam Chomsky on the Responsibility of Intellectuals: Redux

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK9W5DE7ZtQ). Ideas Matter. Event occurs at 09:23. Retrieved October

16, 2011.

3. ^Barsky, Robert F. "Chomsky and Bertrand Russell"

(http://cognet.mit.edu/library/books/chomsky/chomsky/1/10.html). Noam Chomsky: A Life of Dissent.

Retrieved October 29, 2011.

4. ^Chomsky, Noam (1996). Class Warfare: Interviews with David Barsamian. London: Pluto Press. pp. 2829.

"Thereal importance of Carey's work is that it's the first effort and until now the major effort to bring some of

thistopublic attention. It's had a tremendous influence on the work I've done."

5. ^Robert F. Barsky (1998). "3". Noam Chomsky: A Life of Dissent. MIT Press. p. 106. ISBN 9780262522557.

6. ^Wolfgang B. Sperlich (2006).Noam Chomsky. Reaktion Books. pp. 4445. ISBN 9781861892690.

7. ^Brent D. Slife (1993). Time and Psychological Explanation: The Spectacle of Spain's Tourist Boom and the

Reinvention of Difference. SUNY Press. p. 115. ISBN 9780791414699.

8. ^ abCarlos Peregrn Otero, ed. (1994).Noam Chomsky: Critical Assessments, Volumes 2-3. Taylor & Francis.

p. 487. ISBN 9780415106948.

9. ^"Noam Chomsky Reading List" (http://leftreferenceguide.wordpress.com/noam-chomsky-reading-list/). Left

Reference Guide. Retrieved 8 January 2014.10. ^Noam Chomsky. "Personal influences, by Noam Chomsky (Excerpted from The Chomsky Reader)"

(http://www.chomsky.info/books/reader01.htm). Chomsky.info. Retrieved 2013-05-29.

11. ^Hugh LaFollette, Ingmar Persson, ed. (2013). The Blackwell Guide to Ethical Theory(2 ed.). John Wiley &

Sons. ISBN 9781118514269.
http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781118514269http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://www.chomsky.info/books/reader01.htmhttp://-/?-http://leftreferenceguide.wordpress.com/noam-chomsky-reading-list/http://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780415106948http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780791414699http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781861892690http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780262522557http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://-/?-http://cognet.mit.edu/library/books/chomsky/chomsky/1/10.htmlhttp://-/?-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK9W5DE7ZtQhttp://-/?-http://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michel_Gondryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Posthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Anti-Chomsky_Readerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_important_publications_in_computer_science#Computabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_peace_activistshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_American_philosophershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_workerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_studieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorless_green_ideas_sleep_furiouslyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chomskybot&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axiom_of_categoricityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_philosophyhttp://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-http://-/?-


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. .

12. ^William D. Hart.Edward Said and the Religious Effects of Culture. Cambridge University Press. p. 116.

ISBN 9780521778107.

13. ^Stephen Prickett (2002).Narrative, Religion and Science: Fundamentalism Versus Irony, 1700-1999.

Cambridge University Press. p. 234. ISBN 9780521009836.

14. ^John R. Searle (June 29, 1972). "A Special Supplement: Chomsky's Revolution in Linguistics"

(http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/1972/jun/29/a-special-supplement-chomskys-revolution-in-lingui/).

NYREV, Inc.

15. ^ ab"Chomsky Amid the Philosophers" (http://www.uea.ac.uk/~j108/chomsky.htm). University of East Anglia.

Retrieved 8 January 2014.

16. ^Gould, S. J. (1981). "Official Transcript for Gould's deposition in McLean v. Arkansas".

(http://www.antievolution.org/projects/mclean/new_site/depos/pf_gould_dep.htm) (Nov. 27).

17. ^Scott M. Fulton, III. "John W. Backus (1924 - 2007)" (http://betanews.com/2007/03/20/john-w-backus-

1924-2007/). BetaNews, Inc.

18. ^Aaron Swartz (May 15, 2006). "The Book That Changed My Life"

(http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/epiphany). Raw Thought. Retrieved 8 January 2014.19. ^Keller, Katherine (November 2, 2007). "Writer, Creator, Journalist, and Uppity Woman: Ann Nocenti"

(http://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=737). Sequential Tart.

20. ^ abc"Noam Chomsky" (http://chomsky.info/bios/2004----.htm), by Zoltn Gendler Szab, inDictionary of

Modern American Philosophers, 18601960, ed. Ernest Lepore (2004). "Chomsky's intellectual life had been

divided between his work in linguistics and his political activism, philosophy coming as a distant third.

Nonetheless, his influence among analytic philosophers has been enormous because of three factors. First,

Chomsky contributed substantially to a major methodological shift in the human sciences, turning away from

theprevailing empiricism of the middle of the twentieth century: behaviorism in psychology, structuralism in

linguistics and positivism in philosophy. Second, his groundbreaking books on syntax (Chomsky (1957, 1965))

laid a conceptual foundation for a new, cognitivist approach to linguistics and provided philosophers with a new

framework for thinking about human language and the mind. And finally, he has persistently defended his views

against all takers, engaging in important debates with many of the major figures in analytic philosophy..."

21. ^TheCambridge Dictionary of Philosophy(1999), "Chomsky, Noam," Cambridge University Press, pg. 138.

"Chomsky, Noam (born 1928), preeminent American linguist, philosopher, and political activist... Many of

Chomsky's most significant contributions to philosophy, such as his influential rejection of behaviorism... stem

from his elaborations and defenses of the above consequences..."

22. ^Edwin D. Reilly (2003).Milestones in Computer Science and Information Technology. Greenwood Publishing

Group. pp. 4344. ISBN 9781573565219. "In 1956, the logician Noam Chomsky showed that there are only

four basically different forms Church-Turing thesis of grammar, which, in decreasing order of sophistication,

he called grammars of Type 0, 1, 2, and 3.". Viewed July 15, 2012.

23. ^H. L. Somers (2003). Sergei Nirenburg, H. L. Somers, Yorick Wilks, ed.Readings in Machine Translation.

MIT Press. p. 68. ISBN 9780262140744. "I think that this should be of sufficient interest to warrant some

more detailed exhibition, especially since this insight is due to an important new, not to say revolutionary, view

of thestructure of language, recently outlined by the American linguist and logician Noam Chomsky [2], and

couldperhaps, in its turn and in due time, be turned into a new method of machine translation, which would be

more complex than the known ones but also more effective.". Viewed July 15, 2012.

24. ^Carlos Peregrn Otero, ed. (1994).Noam Chomsky: Critical Assessments, Volume 1; Volume 3. Taylor &

Francis. pp. 1415. ISBN 9780415106931. "Chomsky is a professional linguist, a competent mathematical

logician, and a trained methodologist with a keen critical sense and an uncanny ability to follow the most
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780415106931http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_translationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780262140744http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781573565219http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_University_Presshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cambridge_Dictionary_of_Philosophyhttp://chomsky.info/bios/2004----.htmhttp://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=737http://-/?-http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/epiphanyhttp://-/?-http://betanews.com/2007/03/20/john-w-backus-1924-2007/http://-/?-http://www.antievolution.org/projects/mclean/new_site/depos/pf_gould_dep.htmhttp://-/?-http://www.uea.ac.uk/~j108/chomsky.htmhttp://-/?-http://-/?-http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/1972/jun/29/a-special-supplement-chomskys-revolution-in-lingui/http://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780521009836http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780521778107http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://-/?-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781118514269http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number


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abstruse mathematical argument or, if necessary, to produce one himself."

25. ^Fox, Margalit (December 5, 1998). "A Changed Noam Chomsky Simplifies"

(http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.htmlres=F20B1FFA3A5F0C768CDDAB0994D0494D81&n=Top%2fRef

erence%2fTimes%20Topics%2fPeople%2fC%2fChomsky%2c%20Noam). New York Times. Retrieved

August 2, 2008. "... Noam Chomsky, father of modern linguistics and the field's most influential practitioner;

..."

26. ^Thomas Tymoczko, Jim Henle, James M. Henle, Sweet Reason: A Field Guide to Modern Logic, Birkhuser,2000,p. 101.

27. ^Duncan Campbell (2005-10-18). "Chomsky is voted world's top public intellectual | World news"

(http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2005/oct/18/books.highereducation). The Guardian. Retrieved 2013-05-29.

28. ^"Noam Chomsky"

(https://web.archive.org/web/20100528222251/http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/abcde/c

homsky_noam.html). Web.archive.org. May 28, 2010. Archived from the original

(http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/abcde/chomsky_noam.html) on May 28, 2010.

Retrieved August 16, 2011.

29. ^"Chomsky is Citation Champ" (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/1992/citation-0415.html). MIT News Office.

April15, 1992. Retrieved September 3, 2007.

30. ^ abHughes, Samuel (JulyAugust 2001). "Speech!" (http://www.chomsky.info/onchomsky/200107--.htm).

ThePennsylvania Gazette. Retrieved September 3, 2007. "According to a recent survey by the Institute for

Scientific Information, only Marx, Lenin, Shakespeare, Aristotle, the Bible, Plato, and Freud are cited more

often in academic journals than Chomsky, who edges out Hegel and Cicero."

31. ^ abRobinson, Paul (February 25, 1979). "The Chomsky Problem". The New York Times. "Judged in terms of

thepower, range, novelty and influence of his thought, Noam Chomsky is arguably the most important

intellectual alive today. He is also a disturbingly divided intellectual."

32. ^Michael Sipser (1997).Introduction to the Theory of Computation. PWS Publishing. ISBN 0-534-94728-X.

33. ^ ab"The Cognitive Science Millennium Project"

(http://www.cogsci.umn.edu/OLD/calendar/past_events/millennium/final.html). Cogsci.umn.edu. Retrieved

August 16, 2011.

34. ^Patel 2008, p. 240.

35. ^Chomsky, Noam (2013). On Anarchism. New York: New Press. ISBN 978-1595589101.

36. ^Lyons 1978, p. xv; Barsky 1997, p. 9.

37. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 910.38. ^Barsky 1997, p. 11.

39. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 3031.

40. ^ abBarsky 1997, pp. 1113.

41. ^"The Life and Times of Noam Chomsky, Noam Chomsky interviewed by Amy Goodman"

(http://www.chomsky.info/interviews/20041126.htm). www.chomsky.info. Retrieved December 21, 2008.

42. ^Barsky 1997, p. 15.

43. ^ abcKreisler 2002.

44. ^Barsky 1997, p. 14.45. ^ abBarsky 1997, p. 23.

46. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 1719.

47. ^Lyons 1978, p. xv; Barsky 1997, pp. 1517.

48. ^Kreisler 2002 Cha ter 1: Back round htt :// lobetrotter.berkele .edu/ eo le2/Chomsk /chomsk -
http://globetrotter.berkeley.edu/people2/Chomsky/chomsky-con1.htmlhttp://globetrotter.berkeley.edu/people2/Chomsky/chomsky-con1.htmlhttp://www.chomsky.info/interviews/20041126.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1595589101http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://www.cogsci.umn.edu/OLD/calendar/past_events/millennium/final.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-534-94728-Xhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Numberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Sipserhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_York_Timeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pennsylvania_Gazette_(newsletter)&action=edit&redlink=1http://www.chomsky.info/onchomsky/200107--.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIThttp://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/1992/citation-0415.htmlhttp://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/abcde/chomsky_noam.htmlhttps://web.archive.org/web/20100528222251/http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/abcde/chomsky_noam.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2005/oct/18/books.highereducationhttp://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.htmlres=F20B1FFA3A5F0C768CDDAB0994D0494D81&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fPeople%2fC%2fChomsky%2c%20Noam


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. , . .

con1.html)

49. ^Lyons 1978, p. xv; Barsky 1997, pp. 2122.

50. ^Barksy 1997, p. 47.

51. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 4851.

52. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 5152.

53. ^Zoltn Gendler Szab (2004). "Noam Chomsky" (http://www.chomsky.info/bios/2004----.htm). In LePore,

Ernest.Dictionary of Modern American Philosophers, 1860-1960.

54. ^Lyons 1978, p. xv; Barksy 1997, p. 79.

55. ^Barsky 1997, p. 81.

56. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 8385.

57. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 13, 48, 5152.

58. ^Marquard, Bryan (December 20, 2008). "Carol Chomsky; at 78; Harvard language professor was wife of

MIT linguist"

(http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/12/20/carol_chomsky_at_78_harvard_language_

professor_was_wife_of_mit_linguist/). Boston Globe. Retrieved December 20, 2008.

59. ^Barksy 1996, p. 82.

60. ^Barsky 1997, p. 24.

61. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 2425.

62. ^Barsky 1997, p. 26.

63. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 3435.

64. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 3640.

65. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 4344.

66. ^Lyons 1978, p. xv; Barksy 1997, pp. 8687.

67. ^Barksy 1997, p. 87.

68. ^Lyons 1978, p. xvi; Barsky 1997, p. 91.

69. ^Barsky 1997, p. 91.

70. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 8891.

71. ^Lyons 1978, p. 1.


73. ^Chomsky 1959.

74. ^Lyons 1978, p. 6; Barksy 1997, pp. 9699.

75. ^Barksy 1997, p. 119.76. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 101102, 119.

77. ^Barsky 1997, p. 102.

78. ^Barsky 1997, p. 103.

79. ^Barsky 1997, p. 104.


81. ^ abBarsky 1997, p. 122.

82. ^Barsky 1997, p. 114.

83. ^Barsky 1997, p. 120.

84. ^Chomsky 1967.

85. ^Lyons 1978, p. xvii; Barsky 1997, pp. 122123.

86. ^Lyons 1978, p. xvixvii; Barsky 1997, p. 163.

87. ^Lyons 1978, p. 5; Barsky 1997, p. 123.
http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/12/20/carol_chomsky_at_78_harvard_language_professor_was_wife_of_mit_linguist/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_LePorehttp://www.chomsky.info/bios/2004----.htmhttp://globetrotter.berkeley.edu/people2/Chomsky/chomsky-con1.html


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88. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 134135.

89. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 162163.

90. ^Lyons 1978, p. 5; Barsky 1997, pp. 127129.

91. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 121122, 131.

92. ^Barsky 1997, p. 121.

93. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 167, 170.

94. ^Barksy 1997, pp. 170171.

95. ^Barsky 1997, p. 124.

96. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 123124.

97. ^ abBarsky 1997, p. 143.

98. ^Lyons 1978, p. xvxvi; Barsky 1997, p. 120.

99. ^Lyons 1978, p. xvxvi; Barsky 1997, p. 143.

100. ^Barsky 1997, p. 156.

101. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 192195.

102. ^Barsky 1997, p. 175.

103. ^Barsky 1997, p. 187.

104. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 187189.

105. ^Barsky 1997, p. 190.

106. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 179180.

107. ^ abBarsky 1997, p. 185.

108. ^Barsky 1997, p. 184.

109. ^Barsky 1997, pp. 182183.

110. ^Barsky 1997, p. 214.

111. ^Flint, Anthony (November 19, 1995). "Divided Legacy"

(http://www.chomsky.info/onchomsky/19951119.htm). The Boston Globe. Retrieved September 4, 2007. "Ask

thisintellectual radical why he is shunned by the mainstream, and he'll say that established powers have never

been able to handle his brand of dissent."

112. ^Barsky (1997), "Chapter 4" (http://cognet.mit.edu/library/books/chomsky/chomsky/4/17.html). Retrieved

September 4, 2007. Barsky quotes an excerpt of Edward Herman examining why "one of America's most well-

known intellectuals and dissidents would be thus ignored and even ostracized by the mainstream press". For

example, "Chomsky has never had an Op Ed column in the Washington Post, and his lone opinion piece in the

NewYork Timeswas not an original contribution but rather excerpts from testimony before the Senate Foreign

Relations Committee". Since the September 11 attacks, however, Chomsky has contributed regularly to the

NewYork Times Syndicate.

113. ^Farndale, Nigel (July 6, 2010). "Noam Chomsky interview"

(http://www.telegraph.co.u

noam chomsky - wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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