Paul Kurtz
Center for Inquiry — Amherst, NY
Dr. Paul Kurtz is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Buffalo, and the founder and chair emeritus of the Center For Inquiry and its two main subdivisions, the Council for Secular Humanism and the Committee for the Skeptical Inquiry. He is Editor-in-Chief of the magazine, Free Inquiry, and is on the Editorial Board of the Skeptical Inquirer magazine.
Dr. Kurtz is the author or editor of over 48 books, including American Philosophy in the Twentieth Century (Macmillan 1966), Moral Problems in Contemporary Society (Prentice-Hall 1969), Exuberance (Wilshire Books 1977), The Transcendental Temptation (Prometheus 1986), Forbidden Fruit (Prometheus 1987), The Courage to Become (Praeger/Greenwood 1997), Embracing the Power of Humanism (Roman and Littlefield, 2000), Skepticism & Humanism (Transactions, 2001), and Affirmations (Prometheus, 2004).
He has published over 850 articles and reviews in journals such as Journal of Philosophy, Philosophical Quarterly, American Behavioral Scientist, Psychology Today, Smithsonian, and Science Digest. Dr. Kurtz's life and work have been featured in newspapers and periodicals including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time Magazine, Reader's Digest, Science Magazine, Scientific American, Cosmopolitan, The Wall Street Journal, and The London Times, and he has appeared on most national TV and radio news programs, such as The Today Show, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, and Nightline. Dr. Kurtz is entered in Who's Who in the World and Who's Who in America.
Dr. Kurtz earned a B.A. in Philosophy at New York University in 1948, and a Ph.D. in Philosophy at Columbia University in 1952. He has taught at the New School for Social Research, Vassar College, Trinity College, Union College, Queens College, City University of New York, University of Besançon (France), and has served as Co-President of the International Humanist and Ethical Union and a fellow of the AAAS.
Watch below as Paul discusses the meaning of life:
