Werner Leinfellner

Werner Leinfellner (27 January 1921 – 6 April 2010) was an Austrian philosopher of science. He was professor of philosophy at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and at the Vienna University of Technology. After recovering from severe wounds sustained in World War II, he studied chemistry and physics before turning to the philosophy of science, earning his Ph.D. in 1959. Leinfellner moved to the United States in 1967 due to difficulties faced by empirically oriented philosophers in Europe. He is recognized for his significant contributions to the philosophy of science, founding the journal Theory and Decision and co-founding the Theory and Decision Library, the Austrian Ludwig Wittgenstein Society, and the International Wittgenstein Symposium. He also received several awards, including the Grand Honorary Cross for Science and Art, 1st Class, from Austria, and became a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Leinfellner viewed science and philosophy as complementary, emphasizing the probabilistic nature of laws in the social sciences and the universe. He saw evolutionary game theory as a framework for integrating biological and cultural evolution, acknowledging the ethical implications of humans influencing these processes. His personal life included service in the German army during WWII, where he was wounded, and later desertion to join the resistance. He was married to Elisabeth Leinfellner, with whom he had a daughter.