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incentives, motivating the person to focus on obtaining the extrinsic rewards, which overall may make the behaviors less desirable. another effect is that people would like altruism to be due to a personality characteristic rather than due to overt reputational concerns and simply pointing out that there are reputational benefits of an action may actually reduce them. this may possibly be used as derogatory tactic against altruists, especially by those who are non-cooperators. a counterargument is that doing good due to reputational concerns is better than doing no good at all. group selection. it has controversially been argued by some evolutionary scientists such as david sloan wilson that natural selection can act at the level of non-kin groups to produce adaptations that benefit a non-kin group even if these

adaptations are detrimental at the individual level. thus, while altruistic persons may under some circumstances be outcompeted by less altruistic persons at the individual level, according to group selection theory the opposite may occur at the group level where groups consisting of the more altruistic persons may outcompete groups consisting of the less altruistic persons. such altruism may only extend to ingroup members while there may instead prejudice and antagonism against outgroup members (see also in-group favoritism). group selection theory has been criticized by many other evolutionary scientists. such explanations do not imply that humans are always consciously calculating how to increase their inclusive fitness when they are doing altruistic acts. instead, evolution has shaped psychological mechanisms,

such as emotions, that promote altruistic behaviors. every single instance of altruistic behavior need not always increase inclusive fitness; altruistic behaviors would have been selected for if such behaviors on average increased inclusive fitness in the ancestral environment. this need not imply that on average 50% or more of altruistic acts were beneficial for the altruist in the ancestral environment; if the benefits from helping the right person were very high it would be beneficial to err on the side of caution and usually be altruistic even if in most cases there were no benefits. the benefits for the altruist may be increased and the costs reduced by being more altruistic towards certain groups. research has found that people are more altruistic to kin than to no-kin, to friends than to strangers, to

those attractive than to those unattractive, to non-competitors than to competitors, and to members ingroups than to members of outgroup. the study of altruism was the initial impetus behind george r. price's development of the price equation, which is a mathematical equation used to study genetic evolution. an interesting example of altruism is found in the cellular slime moulds, such as dictyostelium mucoroides. these protists live as individual amoebae until starved, at which point they aggregate and form a multicellular fruiting body in which some cells sacrifice themselves to promote the survival of other cells in the fruiting body. selective investment theory proposes that close social bonds, and associated emotional, cognitive, and neurohormonal mechanisms, evolved in order to facilitate long-term, high-cost

altruism between those closely depending on one another for survival and reproductive success. such cooperative behaviors have sometimes been seen as arguments for left-wing politics such by the russian zoologist and anarchist peter kropotkin in his 1902 book mutual aid: a factor of evolution and moral philosopher peter singer in his book a darwinian left. neurobiology jorge moll and jordan grafman, neuroscientists at the national institutes of health and labs-d'or hospital network (j.m.) provided the first evidence for the neural bases of altruistic giving in normal healthy volunteers, using functional magnetic resonance imaging. in their research, published in the proceedings of the national academy of sciences usa in october 2006, they showed that both pure monetary rewards and charitable donations activated

the mesolimbic reward pathway, a primitive part of the brain that usually responds to food and sex. however, when volunteers generously placed the interests of others before their own by making charitable donations, another brain circuit was selectively activated: the subgenual cortex/septal region. these structures are intimately related to social attachment and bonding in other species. altruism, the experiment suggested, was not a superior moral faculty that suppresses basic selfish urges but rather was basic to the brain, hard-wired and pleasurable. one brain region, the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex/basal forebrain, contributes to learning altruistic behavior, especially in those with trait empathy. the same study has shown a connection between giving to charity and the promotion of social bonding. in

fact, in an experiment published in march 2007 at the university of southern california neuroscientist antonio r. damasio and his colleagues showed that subjects with damage to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex lack the ability to empathically feel their way to moral answers, and that when confronted with moral dilemmas, these brain-damaged patients coldly came up with "end-justifies-the-means" answers, leading damasio to conclude that the point was not that they reached immoral conclusions, but that when they were confronted by a difficult issue in this case as whether to shoot down a passenger plane hijacked by terrorists before it hits a major city these patients appear to reach decisions without the anguish that afflicts those with normally functioning brains. according to adrian raine, a clinical neuroscientist

also at the university of southern california, one of this study's implications is that society may have to rethink how it judges immoral people: "psychopaths often feel no empathy or remorse. without that awareness, people relying exclusively on reasoning seem to find it harder to sort their way through moral thickets. does that mean they should be held to different standards of accountability?" in another study, in the 1990s, dr. bill harbaugh, a university of oregon economist, concluded people are motivated to give for reasons of personal prestige and in a similar fmri scanner test in 2007 with his psychologist colleague dr. ulrich mayr, reached the same conclusions of jorge moll and jordan grafman about giving to charity, although they were able to divide the study group into two groups: "egoists" and "altruists".

one of their discoveries was that, though rarely, even some of the considered "egoists" sometimes gave more than expected because that would help others, leading to the conclusion that there are other factors in cause in charity, such as a person's environment and values. psychology the international encyclopedia of the social sciences defines psychological altruism as "a motivational state with the goal of increasing another's welfare". psychological altruism is contrasted with psychological egoism, which refers to the motivation to increase one's own welfare. there has been some debate on whether or not humans are truly capable of psychological altruism. some definitions specify a self-sacrificial nature to altruism and a lack of external rewards for altruistic behaviors. however, because altruism ultimately

benefits the self in many cases, the selflessness of altruistic acts is brought to question. the social exchange theory postulates that altruism only exists when benefits to the self outweigh costs to the self. daniel batson is a psychologist who examined this question and argues against the social exchange theory. he identified four major motives: to ultimately benefit the self (egoism), to ultimately benefit the other person (altruism), to benefit a group (collectivism), or to uphold a moral principle (principlism). altruism that ultimately serves selfish gains is thus differentiated from selfless altruism, but the general conclusion has been that empathy-induced altruism can be genuinely selfless. the empathy-altruism hypothesis basically states that psychological altruism does exist and is evoked by the empathic

desire to help someone who is suffering. feelings of empathic concern are contrasted with feelings of personal distress, which compel people to reduce their own unpleasant emotions and increase their own positive ones through helping someone in need. empathy is thus not selfless, since altruism works either as the way to avoid those negative, unpleasant feelings and have positive, pleasant feelings triggered by others' need for help, or as the way to incentive the gain of social reward or through fear to avoid social punishment by helping. people with empathic concern help others in distress even when exposure to the situation could be easily avoided, whereas those lacking in empathic concern avoid helping unless it is difficult or impossible to avoid exposure to another's suffering. helping behavior is seen

in humans at about two years old, when a toddler is capable of understanding subtle emotional cues. in psychological research on altruism, studies often observe altruism as demonstrated through prosocial behaviors such as helping, comforting, sharing, cooperation, philanthropy, and community service. research has found that people are most likely to help if they recognize that a person is in need and feel personal responsibility for reducing the person's distress. research also suggests that the number of bystanders witnessing distress or suffering affects the likelihood of helping (the bystander effect). greater numbers of bystanders decrease individual feelings of responsibility. however, a witness with a high level of empathic concern is likely to assume personal responsibility entirely regardless of the

number of bystanders. many studies have observed the effects of volunteerism (as a form of altruism) on happiness and health and have consistently found a strong connection between volunteerism and current and future health and well-being. in a study of older adults, those who volunteered were higher on life satisfaction and will to live, and lower in depression, anxiety, and somatization. volunteerism and helping behavior have not only been shown to improve mental health, but physical health and longevity as well, attributable to the activity and social integration it encourages. one study examined the physical health of mothers who volunteered over a 30-year period and found that 52% of those who did not belong to a volunteer organization experienced a major illness while only 36% of those who did volunteer

experienced one. a study on adults ages 55+ found that during the four-year study period, people who volunteered for two or more organizations had a 63% lower likelihood of dying. after controlling for prior health status, it was determined that volunteerism accounted for a 44% reduction in mortality. merely being aware of kindness in oneself and others is also associated with greater well-being. a study that asked participants to count each act of kindness they performed for one week significantly enhanced their subjective happiness. it is important to note that, while research supports the idea that altruistic acts bring about happiness, it has also been found to work in the opposite directionthat happier people are also kinder. the relationship between altruistic behavior and happiness is bidirectional. studies

have found that generosity increases linearly from sad to happy affective states. studies have also been careful to note that feeling over-taxed by the needs of others has conversely negative effects on health and happiness. for example, one study on volunteerism found that feeling overwhelmed by others' demands had an even stronger negative effect on mental health than helping had a positive one (although positive effects were still significant). additionally, while generous acts make people feel good about themselves, it is also important for people to appreciate the kindness they receive from others. studies suggest that gratitude goes hand-in-hand with kindness and is also very important for our well-being. a study on the relationship happiness to various character strengths showed that "a conscious focus

on gratitude led to reductions in negative affect and increases in optimistic appraisals, positive affect, offering emotional support, sleep quality, and well-being". pathological altruism pathological altruism is when altruism is taken to an unhealthy extreme, and either harms the altruistic person, or well-intentioned actions cause more harm than good. the term "pathological altruism" was popularised by the book pathological altruism. examples include depression and burnout seen in healthcare professionals, an unhealthy focus on others to the detriment of one's own needs, hoarding of animals, and ineffective philanthropic and social programs that ultimately worsen the situations they are meant to aid. sociology "sociologists have long been concerned with how to build the good society" ("altruism, morality,

and social solidarity". american sociological association.). the structure of our societies and how individuals come to exhibit charitable, philanthropic, and other pro-social, altruistic actions for the common good is a largely researched topic within the field. the american sociology association (asa) acknowledges public sociology saying, "the intrinsic scientific, policy, and public relevance of this field of investigation in helping to construct 'good societies' is unquestionable" ("altruism, morality, and social solidarity" asa). this type of sociology seeks contributions that aid grassroots and theoretical understandings of what motivates altruism and how it is organized, and promotes an altruistic focus in order to benefit the world and people it studies. how altruism is framed, organized, carried out,

and what motivates it at the group level is an area of focus that sociologists seek to investigate in order to contribute back to the groups it studies and "build the good society". the motivation of altruism is also the focus of study; some publications link the occurrence of moral outrage to the punishment of perpetrators and compensation of victims. studies have shown that generosity in laboratory and in online experiments is contagious people imitate observed generosity of others. religious viewpoints most, if not all, of the world's religions promote altruism as a very important moral value. buddhism, christianity, hinduism, islam, jainism, judaism, and sikhism, etc., place particular emphasis on altruistic morality. buddhism altruism figures prominently in buddhism. love and compassion are components

of all forms of buddhism, and are focused on all beings equally: love is the wish that all beings be happy, and compassion is the wish that all beings be free from suffering. "many illnesses can be cured by the one medicine of love and compassion. these qualities are the ultimate source of human happiness, and the need for them lies at the very core of our being" (dalai lama). still, the notion of altruism is modified in such a world-view, since the belief is that such a practice promotes our own happiness: "the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes" (dalai lama). in the context of larger ethical discussions on moral action and judgment, buddhism is characterized by the belief that negative (unhappy) consequences of our actions derive not from punishment or

correction based on moral judgment, but from the law of karma, which functions like a natural law of cause and effect. a simple illustration of such cause and effect is the case of experiencing the effects of what one causes: if one causes suffering, then as a natural consequence one would experience suffering; if one causes happiness, then as a natural consequence one would experience happiness. jainism the fundamental principles of jainism revolve around the concept of altruism, not only for humans but for all sentient beings. jainism preaches the view of ahimsa to live and let live, thereby not harming sentient beings, i.e. uncompromising reverence for all life. it also considers all living things to be equal. the first tirthankara, rishabhdev, introduced the concept of altruism for all living beings, from

extending knowledge and experience to others to donation, giving oneself up for others, non-violence and compassion for all living things. jainism prescribes a path of non-violence to progress the soul to this ultimate goal. a major characteristic of jain belief is the emphasis on the consequences of not only physical but also mental behaviors. one's unconquered mind with anger, pride (ego), deceit, greed and uncontrolled sense organs are the powerful enemies of humans. anger spoils good relations, pride destroys humility, deceit destroys peace and greed destroys everything. jainism recommends conquering anger by forgiveness, pride by humility, deceit by straightforwardness and greed by contentment. jains believe that to attain enlightenment and ultimately liberation, one must practice the following ethical

principles (major vows) in thought, speech and action. the degree to which these principles are practiced is different for householders and monks. they are: non-violence (ahimsa); truthfulness (satya); non-stealing (asteya); celibacy (brahmacharya); non-possession or non-materialism (aparigraha); the "great vows" (mahavrata) are prescribed for monks and "limited vows" (anuvrata) are prescribed for householders. the house-holders are encouraged to practice the above-mentioned five vows. the monks have to observe them very strictly. with consistent practice, it will be possible to overcome the limitations gradually, accelerating the spiritual progress. the principle of nonviolence seeks to minimize karmas which limit the capabilities of the soul. jainism views every soul as worthy of respect because it has

the potential to become siddha (god in jainism). because all living beings possess a soul, great care and awareness is essential in one's actions. jainism emphasizes the equality of all life, advocating harmlessness towards all, whether the creatures are great or small. this policy extends even to microscopic organisms. jainism acknowledges that every person has different capabilities and capacities to practice and therefore accepts different levels of compliance for ascetics and householders. christianity st thomas aquinas interprets 'you should love your neighbour as yourself' as meaning that love for ourselves is the exemplar of love for others. considering that "the love with which a man loves himself is the form and root of friendship" and quotes aristotle that "the origin of friendly relations with others

lies in our relations to ourselves", he concluded that though we are not bound to love others more than ourselves, we naturally seek the common good, the good of the whole, more than any private good, the good of a part. however, he thinks we should love god more than ourselves and our neighbours, and more than our bodily lifesince the ultimate purpose of loving our neighbour is to share in eternal beatitude: a more desirable thing than bodily well-being. in coining the word altruism, as stated above, comte was probably opposing this thomistic doctrine, which is present in some theological schools within catholicism. many biblical authors draw a strong connection between love of others and love of god. 1 john 4 states that for one to love god one must love his fellowman, and that hatred of one's fellowman is

the same as hatred of god. thomas jay oord has argued in several books that altruism is but one possible form of love. an altruistic action is not always a loving action. oord defines altruism as acting for the other's good, and he agrees with feminists who note that sometimes love requires acting for one's own good when the other's demands undermine overall well-being. german philosopher max scheler distinguishes two ways in which the strong can help the weak. one way is a sincere expression of christian love, "motivated by a powerful feeling of security, strength, and inner salvation, of the invincible fullness of one's own life and existence". another way is merely "one of the many modern substitutes for love,... nothing but the urge to turn away from oneself and to lose oneself in other people's business".

at its worst, scheler says, "love for the small, the poor, the weak, and the oppressed is really disguised hatred, repressed envy, an impulse to detract, etc., directed against the opposite phenomena: wealth, strength, power, largesse." islam in islam, the concept "ithar" () (altruism) is the notion of "preferring others to oneself". for sufis, this means devotion to others through complete forgetfulness of one's own concerns, where concern for others is deemed as a demand made by allah (i.e. god) on the human body, considered to be property of allah alone. the importance of ithar lies in sacrifice for the sake of the greater good; islam considers those practicing ithar as abiding by the highest degree of nobility. this is similar to the notion of chivalry, but unlike that european concept, in ithar attention

is focused on everything in existence. a constant concern for allah results in a careful attitude towards people, animals, and other things in this world. judaism judaism defines altruism as the desired goal of creation. the famous rabbi abraham isaac kook stated that love is the most important attribute in humanity. this is defined as bestowal, or giving, which is the intention of altruism. this can be altruism towards humanity that leads to altruism towards the creator or god. kabbalah defines god as the force of giving in existence. rabbi moshe chaim luzzatto in particular focused on the 'purpose of creation' and how the will of god was to bring creation into perfection and adhesion with this upper force. modern kabbalah developed by rabbi yehuda ashlag, in his writings about the future generation, focuses

on how society could achieve an altruistic social framework. ashlag proposed that such a framework is the purpose of creation, and everything that happens is to raise humanity to the level of altruism, love for one another. ashlag focused on society and its relation to divinity. sikhism altruism is essential to the sikh religion. the central faith in sikhism is that the greatest deed any one can do is to imbibe and live the godly qualities like love, affection, sacrifice, patience, harmony, truthfulness. the concept of seva, or selfless service to the community for its own sake, is an important concept in sikhism. the fifth guru, arjun dev, sacrificed his life to uphold "22 carats of pure truth, the greatest gift to humanity", the guru granth. the ninth guru, tegh bahadur, sacrificed his head to protect weak

and defenseless people against atrocity. in the late seventeenth century, guru gobind singh (the tenth guru in sikhism), was at war with the mughal rulers to protect the people of different faiths when a fellow sikh, bhai kanhaiya, attended the troops of the enemy. he gave water to both friends and foes who were wounded on the battlefield. some of the enemy began to fight again and some sikh warriors were annoyed by bhai kanhaiya as he was helping their enemy. sikh soldiers brought bhai kanhaiya before guru gobind singh, and complained of his action that they considered counterproductive to their struggle on the battlefield. "what were you doing, and why?" asked the guru. "i was giving water to the wounded because i saw your face in all of them", replied bhai kanhaiya. the guru responded, "then you should also

give them ointment to heal their wounds. you were practicing what you were coached in the house of the guru." under the tutelage of the guru, bhai kanhaiya subsequently founded a volunteer corps for altruism, which is still engaged today in doing good to others and in training new recruits for this service. hinduism in hinduism selflessness (atmatyag), love (prema), kindness (daya) and forgiveness (kshama) are considered as the highest acts of humanity or "manushyattva". giving alms to the beggers or poor people is considered as a divine act or "punya" and hindus believe it will free their souls from guilt or "paapa" and will led them to heaven or "swarga" in afterlife. altruism is also the central act of various hindu mythology and religious poems and songs. the founder of warkari samprdaya the great saint

"dhnyaneshwar maharaj" (1275-1296) in his "pasaydan" pray to the supreme lord "vitthal" for the wellbeing of all living organisms of the universe. swami vivekananda, the legendary hindu monk, has said -"jive prem kare jeijon, seijon sebiche iswar" (whoever loves any living being, is serving god.). mass donation of clothes to poor people (vastraseva), or blood donation camp or mass food donation (annaseva) for poor people is common in various hindu religious ceremonies. swami sivananda, an advaita scholar, reiterates the views in his commentary synthesising vedanta views on the brahma sutras, a vedantic text. in his commentary on chapter 3 of the brahma sutras, sivananda notes that karma is insentient and short-lived, and ceases to exist as soon as a deed is executed. hence, karma cannot bestow the fruits of

actions at a future date according to one's merit. furthermore, one cannot argue that karma generates apurva or punya, which gives fruit. since apurva is non-sentient, it cannot act unless moved by an intelligent being such as a god. it cannot independently bestow reward or punishment. however the very well known and popular text, the bhagavad gita supports the doctrine of karma yoga (achieving oneness with god through action) & "nishkam karma" or action without expectation / desire for personal gain which can be said to encompass altruism. altruistic acts are generally celebrated and very well received in hindu literature and is central to hindu morality. philosophy there exists a wide range of philosophical views on humans' obligations or motivations to act altruistically. proponents of ethical altruism

maintain that individuals are morally obligated to act altruistically. the opposing view is ethical egoism, which maintains that moral agents should always act in their own self-interest. both ethical altruism and ethical egoism contrast with utilitarianism, which maintains that each agent should act in order to maximise the efficacy of their function and the benefit to both themselves and their co-inhabitants. a related concept in descriptive ethics is psychological egoism, the thesis that humans always act in their own self-interest and that true altruism is impossible. rational egoism is the view that rationality consists in acting in one's self-interest (without specifying how this affects one's moral obligations). effective altruism effective altruism is a philosophy and social movement that uses evidence

and reasoning to determine the most effective ways to benefit others. effective altruism encourages individuals to consider all causes and actions and to act in the way that brings about the greatest positive impact, based upon their values. it is the broad, evidence-based and cause-neutral approach that distinguishes effective altruism from traditional altruism or charity. effective altruism is part of the larger movement towards evidence-based practices. while a substantial proportion of effective altruists have focused on the nonprofit sector, the philosophy of effective altruism applies more broadly to prioritizing the scientific projects, companies, and policy initiatives which can be estimated to save lives, help people, or otherwise have the biggest benefit. people associated with the movement include

philosopher peter singer, facebook co founder dustin moskovitz, cari tuna, ben delo, oxford-based researchers william macaskill and toby ord, and professional poker player liv boeree, genetics the genes oxtr, cd38, comt, drd4, drd5, igf2, and gabrb2 have been found to be candidate genes for altruism. digital altruism digital altruism is the notion that some are willing to freely share information based on the principle of reciprocity and in the belief that in the end, everyone benefits from sharing information via the internet. this term is coined by dr. dana klisanin, the founder and ceo of evolutionary guidance media r&d inc., and is a recipient of the early career award for scientific achievement in media psychology from the american psychological association's division of media psychology. according to

klisanin, "the notion that "some are willing to freely reveal what they know" is interesting. types of digital altruism there are three types of digital altruism: (1) "everyday digital altruism," involving expedience, ease, moral engagement, and conformity; (2) "creative digital altruism," involving creativity, heightened moral engagement, and cooperation; and (3) "co-creative digital altruism" involving creativity, moral engagement, and meta cooperative efforts. see also altruria, california charitable organization comedy of the commons consideration egotism family economics golden rule gene-centered view of evolution humanity (virtue) misanthropy mutual aid non nobis solum prisoner's dilemma random act of kindness social preferences social psychology solidarity (sociology) spite (game

theory) notes references comte, auguste, catechisme positiviste (1852) or catechism of positivism, tr. r. congreve, (london: kegan paul, 1891) kropotkin, peter, mutual aid: a factor of evolution (1902) nietzsche, friedrich, beyond good and evil pierre-joseph proudhon, the philosophy of poverty (1847) lysander spooner, natural law matt ridley, the origins of virtue oliner, samuel p. and pearl m. towards a caring society: ideas into action. west port, ct: praeger, 1995. external links richard kraut (2016) altruism stanford encyclopedia of philosophy auguste comte defence mechanisms morality moral psychology philanthropy social philosophy interpersonal relationships virtue

alice o'connor (born alisa zinovyevna rosenbaum; , 1905 march 6, 1982), better known by her pen name ayn rand (), was a russian-born american writer and philosopher. she is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system she named objectivism. born and educated in russia, she moved to the united states in 1926. she wrote a play that opened on broadway in 1935. after two early novels that were initially unsuccessful, she achieved fame with her 1943 novel, the fountainhead. in 1957, rand published her best-known work, the novel atlas shrugged. afterward, until her death in 1982, she turned to non-fiction to promote her philosophy, publishing her own periodicals and releasing several collections of essays. rand advocated reason as the only means of acquiring knowledge; she rejected faith and religion.

she supported rational and ethical egoism and rejected altruism. in politics, she condemned the initiation of force as immoral and opposed collectivism, statism, and anarchism. instead, she supported laissez-faire capitalism, which she defined as the system based on recognizing individual rights, including private property rights. although rand opposed libertarianism, which she viewed as anarchism, she is often associated with the modern libertarian movement in the united states. in art, rand promoted romantic realism. she was sharply critical of most philosophers and philosophical traditions known to her, except for aristotle, thomas aquinas, and classical liberals. rand's fiction received mixed reviews from literary critics. although academic interest in her ideas has grown since her death, academic philosophers

have generally ignored or rejected her philosophy because of her polemical approach and lack of methodological rigor. her writings have politically influenced some libertarians and conservatives. the objectivist movement attempts to spread her ideas, both to the public and in academic settings. life early life rand was born alisa zinovyevna rosenbaum on february2, 1905, to a russian-jewish bourgeois family living in saint petersburg. she was the eldest of three daughters of zinovy zakharovich rosenbaum, a pharmacist, and anna borisovna (nee kaplan). rand later said she found school unchallenging and began writing screenplays at age eight and novels at age ten. at the prestigious , her closest friend was vladimir nabokov's younger sister, olga; the pair shared an intense interest in politics. she was twelve

at the time of the february revolution of 1917, during which rand favored alexander kerensky over tsar nicholasii. the subsequent october revolution and the rule of the bolsheviks under vladimir lenin disrupted the life the family had enjoyed previously. her father's business was confiscated, and the family fled to the crimean peninsula, which was initially under the control of the white army during the russian civil war. while in high school there, rand concluded she was an atheist and valued reason above any other virtue. after graduating in june 1921, she returned with her family to petrograd (as saint petersburg was then named), where they faced desperate conditions, occasionally nearly starving. following the russian revolution, universities were opened to women, allowing her to be in the first group of

women to enroll at petrograd state university. at 16, she began her studies in the department of social pedagogy, majoring in history. at the university, she was introduced to the writings of aristotle and plato; rand came to see their differing views on reality and knowledge as the primary conflict within philosophy. she also studied the philosophical works of friedrich nietzsche. along with many other bourgeois students, she was purged from the university shortly before graduating. after complaints from a group of visiting foreign scientists, many of the purged students were allowed to complete their work and graduate, which she did in october 1924. she then studied for a year at the state technicum for screen arts in leningrad. for an assignment, rand wrote an essay about the polish actress pola negri, which

became her first published work. by this time, she had decided her professional surname for writing would be rand, possibly because it is graphically similar to a vowelless excerpt of her birth surname in cyrillic. she adopted the first name ayn. arrival in the united states in late 1925, rand was granted a visa to visit relatives in chicago. she departed on january17, 1926. arriving in new york city on february19, 1926, rand was so impressed with the manhattan skyline that she cried what she later called "tears of splendor". intent on staying in the united states to become a screenwriter, she lived for a few months with her relatives. one of them owned a movie theater and allowed her to watch dozens of films free of charge. she then left for hollywood, california. in hollywood, a chance meeting with famed

director cecil b. demille led to work as an extra in his film the king of kings and a subsequent job as a junior screenwriter. while working on the king of kings, she met an aspiring young actor, frank o'connor; the two married on april15, 1929. she became a permanent american resident in july 1929 and an american citizen on march3, 1931. she made several attempts to bring her parents and sisters to the united states, but they were unable to obtain permission to emigrate. during these early years of her career, rand wrote a number of screenplays, plays, and short stories that were not produced or published during her lifetime; some were published later in the early ayn rand. early fiction although it was never produced, rand's first literary success came with the sale of her screenplay red pawn to universal

studios in 1932. her courtroom drama night of january16th, first produced by e.e.clive in hollywood in 1934, reopened successfully on broadway in 1935. each night, a jury was selected from members of the audience; based on its vote, one of two different endings would be performed. her first published novel, the semi-autobiographical we the living, was published in 1936. set in soviet russia, it focused on the struggle between the individual and the state. initial sales were slow, and the american publisher let it go out of print, although european editions continued to sell. she adapted the story as a stage play, but producer george abbott's broadway production was a failure and closed in less than a week. after the success of her later novels, rand was able to release a revised version in 1959 that has since

sold over three million copies. in a foreword to the 1959 edition, rand wrote that we the living "is as near to an autobiography as i will ever write. ... the plot is invented, the background is not...". rand wrote her novella anthem during a break from writing her next major novel, the fountainhead. it presents a vision of a dystopian future world in which totalitarian collectivism has triumphed to such an extent that even the word i has been forgotten and replaced with we. published in england in 1938, rand could not find an american publisher initially. as with we the living, rand's later success allowed her to get a revised version published in 1946, which has sold over 3.5million copies. the fountainhead and political activism during the 1940s, rand became politically active. she and her husband worked

as full-time volunteers for republican wendell willkie's 1940 presidential campaign. this led to rand's first public speaking experiences; she enjoyed fielding sometimes hostile questions from new york city audiences who had seen pro-willkie newsreels. her work brought her into contact with other intellectuals sympathetic to free-market capitalism. she became friends with journalist henry hazlitt, who introduced her to the austrian school economist ludwig von mises. despite her philosophical differences with them, rand strongly endorsed the writings of both men throughout her career, and both of them expressed admiration for her. mises once referred to her as "the most courageous man in america", a compliment that particularly pleased her because he said "man" instead of "woman". rand became friends with libertarian

writer isabel paterson. rand questioned her about american history and politics long into the night during their many meetings, and gave paterson ideas for her only non-fiction book, the god of the machine. rand's first major success as a writer came in 1943 with the fountainhead, a romantic and philosophical novel that she wrote over seven years. the novel centers on an uncompromising young architect named howard roark and his struggle against what rand described as "second-handers"those who attempt to live through others, placing others above themselves. twelve publishers rejected it before the bobbs-merrill company finally accepted it at the insistence of editor archibald ogden, who threatened to quit if his employer did not publish it. while completing the novel, rand was prescribed the amphetamine benzedrine

to fight fatigue. the drug helped her to work long hours to meet her deadline for delivering the novel, but afterwards she was so exhausted that her doctor ordered two weeks' rest. her use of the drug for approximately three decades may have contributed to what some of her later associates described as volatile mood swings. the fountainhead became a worldwide success, bringing rand fame and financial security. in 1943, she sold the film rights to warner bros. and returned to hollywood to write the screenplay. producer hal b. wallis hired her afterwards as a screenwriter and script-doctor. her work for him included the screenplays for the oscar-nominated love letters and you came along. rand worked on other projects, including a never-completed nonfiction treatment of her philosophy to be called the moral basis

of individualism. rand extended her involvement with free-market and anti-communist activism while working in hollywood. she became involved with the anti-communist motion picture alliance for the preservation of american ideals and wrote articles on the group's behalf. she also joined the anti-communist american writers association. a visit by paterson to meet with rand's california associates led to a falling out between the two when paterson made comments to valued political allies which rand considered rude. in 1947, during the second red scare, rand testified as a "friendly witness" before the united states house un-american activities committee that the 1944 film song of russia grossly misrepresented conditions in the soviet union, portraying life there as much better and happier than it was. she also

wanted to criticize the lauded 1946 film the best years of our lives for what she interpreted as its negative presentation of the business world, but was not allowed to do so. when asked after the hearings about her feelings on the investigations' effectiveness, rand described the process as "futile". after several delays, the film version of the fountainhead was released in 1949. although it used rand's screenplay with minimal alterations, she "disliked the movie from beginning to end" and complained about its editing, the acting and other elements. atlas shrugged and objectivism following the publication of the fountainhead, rand received numerous letters from readers, some of whom the book had influenced profoundly. in 1951, rand moved from los angeles to new york city, where she gathered a group of these

admirers around her. this group (jokingly designated "the collective") included a future chair of the federal reserve alan greenspan, a young psychology student named nathan blumenthal (later nathaniel branden) and his wife barbara, and barbara's cousin leonard peikoff. initially, the group was an informal gathering of friends who met with rand at her apartment on weekends to discuss philosophy. later, rand began allowing them to read the drafts of her new novel, atlas shrugged, as she wrote the manuscript. in 1954, her close relationship with nathaniel branden turned into a romantic affair, with the knowledge of their spouses. published in 1957, atlas shrugged was considered rand's magnum opus. she described the novel's theme as "the role of the mind in man's existenceand, as a corollary, the demonstration

of a new moral philosophy: the morality of rational self-interest". it advocates the core tenets of rand's philosophy of objectivism and expresses her concept of human achievement. the plot involves a dystopian united states in which the most creative industrialists, scientists, and artists respond to a welfare state government by going on strike and retreating to a hidden valley where they build an independent free economy. the novel's hero and leader of the strike, john galt, describes it as "stopping the motor of the world" by withdrawing the minds of the individuals contributing most to the nation's wealth and achievements. with this fictional strike, rand intended to illustrate that without the efforts of the rational and productive, the economy would collapse and society would fall apart. the novel includes

elements of mystery, romance, and science fiction, and contains an extended exposition of objectivism in a lengthy monologue delivered by galt. despite many negative reviews, atlas shrugged became an international bestseller; however, the reaction of intellectuals to the novel discouraged and depressed rand. atlas shrugged was her last completed work of fiction marking the end of her career as a novelist and the beginning of her role as a popular philosopher. in 1958, nathaniel branden established the nathaniel branden lectures, later incorporated as the nathaniel branden institute (nbi), to promote rand's philosophy. collective members gave lectures for the nbi and wrote articles for objectivist periodicals that rand edited. she later published some of these articles in book form. rand was unimpressed by many

of the nbi students and held them to strict standards, sometimes reacting coldly or angrily to those who disagreed with her. critics, including some former nbi students and branden himself, later described the culture of the nbi as one of intellectual conformity and excessive reverence for rand. some described the nbi or the objectivist movement as a cult or religion. rand expressed opinions on a wide range of topics, from literature and music to sexuality and facial hair. some of her followers mimicked her preferences, wearing clothes to match characters from her novels and buying furniture like hers. however, some former nbi students believed the extent of these behaviors was exaggerated, and the problem was concentrated among rand's closest followers in new york. later years throughout the 1960s and 1970s,

rand developed and promoted her objectivist philosophy through her nonfiction works and by giving talks to students at institutions such as yale, princeton, columbia, harvard, and the massachusetts institute of technology. she began delivering annual lectures at the ford hall forum, responding to questions from the audience. during these appearances, she often took controversial stances on the political and social issues of the day. these included: supporting abortion rights, opposing the vietnam war and the military draft (but condemning many draft dodgers as "bums"), supporting israel in the yom kippur war of 1973 against a coalition of arab nations as "civilized men fighting savages", saying european colonists had the right to invade and take land inhabited by american indians, and calling homosexuality "immoral"

and "disgusting", while also advocating the repeal of all laws concerning it. she endorsed several republican candidates for president of the united states, most strongly barry goldwater in 1964, whose candidacy she promoted in several articles for the objectivist newsletter. in 1964, nathaniel branden began an affair with the young actress patrecia scott, whom he later married. nathaniel and barbara branden kept the affair hidden from rand. when she learned of it in 1968, though her romantic relationship with branden had already ended, rand ended her relationship with both brandens, and the nbi was closed. she published an article in the objectivist repudiating nathaniel branden for dishonesty and other "irrational behavior in his private life". in subsequent years, rand and several more of her closest associates

parted company. rand underwent surgery for lung cancer in 1974 after decades of heavy smoking. in 1976, she retired from writing her newsletter and, after her initial objections, allowed a social worker employed by her attorney to enroll her in social security and medicare. during the late 1970s, her activities within the objectivist movement declined, especially after the death of her husband on november9, 1979. one of her final projects was work on a never-completed television adaptation of atlas shrugged. on march6, 1982, rand died of heart failure at her home in new york city. she was interred in the kensico cemetery, valhalla, new york. at her funeral, a floral arrangement in the shape of a dollar sign was placed near her casket. in her will, rand named leonard peikoff as her beneficiary. literary method

and influences rand described her approach to literature as "romantic realism". she wanted her fiction to present the world "as it could be and should be", rather than as it was. this approach led her to create highly stylized situations and characters. her fiction typically has protagonists who are heroic individualists, depicted as fit and attractive. her stories' villains support duty and collectivist moral ideals. rand often describes them as unattractive and they sometimes have names that suggest negative traits, like wesley mouch in atlas shrugged. rand considered plot a critical element of literature, and her stories typically have what biographer anne heller described as "tight, elaborate, fast-paced plotting". romantic triangles are a common plot element in rand's fiction; in most of her novels and

plays, the main female character is romantically involved with at least two different men. influences in school rand read works by fyodor dostoevsky, victor hugo, edmond rostand, and friedrich schiller, who became her favorites. she considered them to be among the "top rank" of romantic writers because of their focus on moral themes and their skill at constructing plots. hugo, in particular, was an important influence on her writing, especially her approach to plotting. in the introduction she wrote for an english-language edition of his novel ninety-three, rand called him "the greatest novelist in world literature". although rand disliked most russian literature, her depictions of her heroes show the influence of the russian symbolists and other nineteenth-century russian writing, most notably the 1863 novel

what is to be done? by nikolay chernyshevsky. rand's experience of the russian revolution and early communist russia influenced the portrayal of her villains. this is most apparent in we the living, set in russia. the ideas and rhetoric of ellsworth toohey in the fountainhead and the destruction of the economy by the looters in atlas shrugged also reflect it. rand's descriptive style echoes her early career writing scenarios and scripts for movies; her novels have many narrative descriptions that resemble early hollywood movie scenarios. they often follow common film editing conventions, such as having a broad establishing shot description of a scene followed by close-up details, and her descriptions of women characters often take a "male gaze" perspective. philosophy rand called her philosophy "objectivism",

describing its essence as "the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute". she considered objectivism a systematic philosophy and laid out positions on metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political philosophy, and aesthetics. in metaphysics, rand supported philosophical realism and opposed anything she regarded as mysticism or supernaturalism, including all forms of religion. rand believed in free will as a form of agent causation and rejected determinism. in epistemology, she considered all knowledge to be based on sense perception, the validity of which rand considered axiomatic, and reason, which she described as "the faculty that identifies and integrates the material provided

by man's senses". rand rejected all claims of non-perceptual or a priori knowledge, including instinct,' 'intuition,' 'revelation,' or any form of 'just knowing. in her introduction to objectivist epistemology, rand presented a theory of concept formation and rejected the analyticsynthetic dichotomy. in ethics, rand argued for rational and ethical egoism (rational self-interest), as the guiding moral principle. she said the individual should "exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself". rand referred to egoism as "the virtue of selfishness" in her book of that title. in it, she presented her solution to the is-ought problem by describing a meta-ethical theory that based morality in the needs of "man's survival qua man". she condemned ethical altruism as incompatible

with the requirements of human life and happiness, and held the initiation of force was evil and irrational, writing in atlas shrugged that, "force and mind are opposites." rand's political philosophy emphasized individual rightsincluding property rights. she considered laissez-faire capitalism the only moral social system because in her view it was the only system based on protecting those rights. rand opposed statism, which she understood included theocracy, absolute monarchy, nazism, fascism, communism, democratic socialism, and dictatorship. she believed a constitutionally limited government should protect natural rights. although her political views are often classified as conservative or libertarian, rand preferred the term "radical for capitalism". she worked with conservatives on political projects,

but disagreed with them over issues such as religion and ethics. rand denounced libertarianism, which she associated with anarchism. she rejected anarchism as a naive theory based in subjectivism that could only lead to collectivism in practice. in aesthetics, rand defined art as a "selective re-creation of reality according to an artist's metaphysical value-judgments". according to her, art allows philosophical concepts to be presented in a concrete form that can be grasped easily, thereby fulfilling a need of human consciousness. as a writer, the art form rand focused on most closely was literature. she considered romanticism to be the approach that most accurately reflected the existence of human free will. rand said her most important contributions to philosophy were her "theory of concepts, ethics, and

discovery in politics that evilthe violation of rightsconsists of the initiation of force". she believed epistemology was a foundational branch of philosophy and considered the advocacy of reason to be the single most significant aspect of her philosophy, stating: "i am not primarily an advocate of capitalism, but of egoism; and i am not primarily an advocate of egoism, but of reason. if one recognizes the supremacy of reason and applies it consistently, all the rest follows." criticisms rand's ethics and politics are the most criticized areas of her philosophy. numerous authors, including robert nozick and william f. o'neill, in some of the earliest academic critiques of her ideas, said she failed in her attempt to solve the isought problem. critics have called her definitions of egoism and altruism biased

and inconsistent with normal usage. critics from religious traditions oppose her rejection of altruism in addition to atheism. essays criticizing rand's egoistic views are included in a number of anthologies for teaching introductory ethics, which often include no essays presenting or defending them. multiple critics, including nozick, have said her attempt to justify individual rights based on egoism fails. others, like michael huemer, have gone further, saying that her support of egoism and her support of individual rights are inconsistent positions. some critics, like roy childs, have said that her opposition to the initiation of force should lead to support of anarchism, rather than limited government. commentators, including hazel barnes, albert ellis, and nathaniel branden, have criticized rand's focus

on the importance of reason. branden said this emphasis led her to denigrate emotions and create unrealistic expectations of how consistently rational human beings should be. relationship to other philosophers except for aristotle, thomas aquinas and classical liberals, rand was sharply critical of most philosophers and philosophical traditions known to her. acknowledging aristotle as her greatest influence, rand remarked that in the history of philosophy she could only recommend "three a's"aristotle, aquinas, and ayn rand. in a 1959 interview with mike wallace, when asked where her philosophy came from, she responded: "out of my own mind, with the sole acknowledgement of a debt to aristotle, the only philosopher who ever influenced me. i devised the rest of my philosophy myself." in an article for the claremont

review of books, political scientist charles murray criticized her claim that her only "philosophical debt" was to aristotle. he asserted her ideas were derivative of previous thinkers such as john locke and friedrich nietzsche. rand found early inspiration from nietzsche, and scholars have found indications of this in rand's private journals. in 1928, she alluded to his idea of the "superman" in notes for an unwritten novel whose protagonist was inspired by the murderer william edward hickman. there are other indications of nietzsche's influence in passages from the first edition of we the living (which rand later revised), and in her overall writing style. by the time she wrote the fountainhead, rand had turned against nietzsche's ideas, and the extent of his influence on her even during her early years is

disputed. rand considered her philosophical opposite to be immanuel kant, whom she referred to as "the most evil man in mankind's history"; she believed his epistemology undermined reason and his ethics opposed self-interest. philosophers george walsh and fred seddon have argued she misinterpreted kant and exaggerated their differences. rand's relationship with contemporary philosophers was mostly antagonistic. she was not an academic and did not participate in academic discourse. she was dismissive toward critics and wrote about ideas she disagreed with in a polemical manner without in-depth analysis. she was in turn viewed very negatively by many academic philosophers, who dismissed her as an unimportant figure who need not be given serious consideration. reception and legacy critical reception the first

reviews rand received were for night of january 16th. reviews of the broadway production were largely positive, but rand considered even positive reviews to be embarrassing because of significant changes made to her script by the producer. although rand believed that her novel we the living was not widely reviewed, over 200 publications published approximately 125 different reviews. overall, they were more positive than those she received for her later work. her 1938 novella anthem received little review attention, both for its first publication in england and for subsequent re-issues. rand's first bestseller, the fountainhead, received far fewer reviews than we the living, and reviewers' opinions were mixed. lorine pruette's positive review in the new york times, which called the author "a writer of great power"

who wrote "brilliantly, beautifully and bitterly", was one that rand greatly appreciated. there were other positive reviews, but rand dismissed most of them for either misunderstanding her message or for being in unimportant publications. some negative reviews said the novel was too long; others called the characters unsympathetic and rand's style "offensively pedestrian". atlas shrugged was widely reviewed, and many of the reviews were strongly negative. atlas shrugged received positive reviews from a few publications, but rand scholar mimi reisel gladstein later wrote that "reviewers seemed to vie with each other in a contest to devise the cleverest put-downs", with reviews including comments that it was "written out of hate" and showed "remorseless hectoring and prolixity". whittaker chambers wrote what was

later called the novel's most "notorious" review for the conservative magazine national review. he accused rand of supporting a godless system (which he related to that of the soviets), claiming, "from almost any page of atlas shrugged, a voice can be heard ... commanding: 'to a gas chambergo!. rand's nonfiction received far fewer reviews than her novels. the tenor of the criticism for her first nonfiction book, for the new intellectual, was similar to that for atlas shrugged. philosopher sidney hook likened her certainty to "the way philosophy is written in the soviet union", and author gore vidal called her viewpoint "nearly perfect in its immorality". these reviews set the pattern for reaction to her ideas among liberal critics. her subsequent books got progressively less review attention. on the 100th anniversary

of rand's birth in 2005, writing for the new york times, edward rothstein referred to her written fiction as quaint utopian "retro fantasy" and programmatic neo-romanticism of the misunderstood artist, while criticizing her characters' "isolated rejection of democratic society". popular interest with over 30million copies sold , rand's books continue to be read widely. a survey conducted for the library of congress and the book-of-the-month club in 1991 asked club members to name the most influential book in their lives. rand's atlas shrugged was the second most popular choice, after the bible. although rand's influence has been greatest in the united states, there has been international interest in her work. rand's contemporary admirers included fellow novelists, like ira levin, kay nolte smith and l. neil

smith; she has influenced later writers like erika holzer and terry goodkind. other artists who have cited rand as an important influence on their lives and thought include comic book artist steve ditko and musician neil peart of rush, although he later distanced himself. rand provided a positive view of business and subsequently many business executives and entrepreneurs have admired and promoted her work. john allison of bb&t and ed snider of comcast spectacor have funded the promotion of rand's ideas. mark cuban (owner of the dallas mavericks) as well as john p. mackey (ceo of whole foods), among others, have said they consider rand crucial to their success. television shows including animated sitcoms, live-action comedies, dramas, and game shows, as well as movies and video games have referred to rand and

her works. throughout her life she was the subject of many articles in popular magazines, as well as book-length critiques by authors such as the psychologist albert ellis and trinity foundation president john w. robbins. rand, or characters based on her, figure prominently in novels by prominent american authors, including mary gaitskill, matt ruff, kay nolte smith, and tobias wolff. nick gillespie, former editor-in- chief of reason, remarked that, "rand's is a tortured immortality, one in which she's as likely to be a punch line as a protagonist. jibes at rand as cold and inhuman run through the popular culture." two movies have been made about rand's life. a 1997 documentary film, ayn rand: a sense of life, was nominated for the academy award for best documentary feature. the passion of ayn rand, a 1999 television

adaptation of the book of the same name, won several awards. rand's image also appears on a 1999 u.s. postage stamp illustrated by artist nick gaetano. rand's works, most commonly anthem or the fountainhead, are sometimes assigned as secondary school reading. since 2002, the ayn rand institute has provided free copies of rand's novels to teachers who promise to include the books in their curriculum. the institute had distributed 4.5million copies in the u.s. and canada by the end of 2020. in 2017, rand was added to the required reading list for the a level politics exam in the united kingdom. political influence although she rejected the labels "conservative" and "libertarian", rand has had a continuing influence on right-wing politics and libertarianism. rand is often considered one of the three most important

women (along with rose wilder lane and isabel paterson) in the early development of modern american libertarianism. david nolan, one founder of the libertarian party, said that "without ayn rand, the libertarian movement would not exist". in his history of that movement, journalist brian doherty described her as "the most influential libertarian of the twentieth century to the public at large". historian jennifer burns referred to her as "the ultimate gateway drug to life on the right". the political figures who cite rand as an influence are usually conservatives (often members of the republican party), despite rand taking some atypical positions for a conservative, like being pro-choice and an atheist. she faced intense opposition from william f. buckley jr. and other contributors to the conservative national

review magazine, which published numerous criticisms of her writings and ideas. nevertheless, a 1987 article in the new york times referred to her as the reagan administration's "novelist laureate". republican congressmen and conservative pundits have acknowledged her influence on their lives and have recommended her novels. she has influenced some conservative politicians outside the u.s., such as sajid javid in the united kingdom, siv jensen in norway, and ayelet shaked in israel. the financial crisis of 20072008 spurred renewed interest in her works, especially atlas shrugged, which some saw as foreshadowing the crisis. opinion articles compared real-world events with the novel's plot. signs mentioning rand and her fictional hero john galt appeared at tea party protests. there was increased criticism of her

ideas, especially from the political left. critics blamed the economic crisis on her support of selfishness and free markets, particularly through her influence on alan greenspan. in 2015, adam weiner said that through greenspan, "rand had effectively chucked a ticking time bomb into the boiler room of the us economy". lisa duggan said that rand's novels had "incalculable impact" in encouraging the spread of neoliberal political ideas. in 2021, cass sunstein said rand's ideas could be seen in the tax and regulatory policies of the trump administration, which he attributed to the "enduring influence" of rand's fiction. academic reaction during rand's lifetime, her work received little attention from academic scholars. since her death, interest in her work has increased gradually. in 2009, historian jennifer burns

identified "three overlapping waves" of scholarly interest in rand, including "an explosion of scholarship" since the year 2000. however, as of that same year, few universities included rand or objectivism as a philosophical specialty or research area, with many literature and philosophy departments dismissing her as a pop culture phenomenon rather than a subject for serious study. from 2002 to 2012, over 60 colleges and universities accepted grants from the charitable foundation of bb&t corporation that required teaching rand's ideas or works; in some cases, the grants were controversial or even rejected because of the requirement to teach about rand. in 2020, media critic eric burns said that, "rand is surely the most engaging philosopher of my lifetime", but "nobody in the academe pays any attention to her,

neither as an author nor a philosopher. that same year, the editor of a collection of critical essays about rand said academics who disapproved of her ideas had long held "a stubborn resolve to ignore or ridicule" her work, but he believed more academic critics were engaging with her work in recent years. to her ideas in 1967, john hospers discussed rand's ethical ideas in the second edition of his textbook, an introduction to philosophical analysis. that same year, hazel barnes included a chapter critiquing objectivism in her book an existentialist ethics. when the first full-length academic book about rand's philosophy appeared in 1971, its author declared writing about rand "a treacherous undertaking" that could lead to "guilt by association" for taking her seriously. a few articles about rand's ideas appeared

in academic journals before her death in 1982, many of them in the personalist. one of these was "on the randian argument" by libertarian philosopher robert nozick, who criticized her meta-ethical arguments. other philosophers, writing in the same publication, argued that nozick misstated rand's case. in an article responding to nozick, douglas den uyl and douglas b. rasmussen defended her positions, but described her style as "literary, hyperbolic and emotional". the philosophic thought of ayn rand, a 1984 collection of essays about objectivism edited by den uyl and rasmussen, was the first academic book about rand's ideas published after her death. in one essay, political writer jack wheeler wrote that despite "the incessant bombast and continuous venting of randian rage", rand's ethics are "a most immense

achievement, the study of which is vastly more fruitful than any other in contemporary thought". in 1987, allan gotthelf, george walsh, and david kelley co-founded the ayn rand society, a group affiliated with the american philosophical association. in a 1995 entry about rand in contemporary women philosophers, jenny a. heyl described a divergence in how different academic specialties viewed rand. she said that rand's philosophy "is regularly omitted from academic philosophy. yet, throughout literary academia, ayn rand is considered a philosopher." writing in the 1998 edition of the routledge encyclopedia of philosophy, political theorist chandran kukathas summarized the mainstream philosophical reception of her work in two parts. he said most commentators view her ethical argument as an unconvincing variant

of aristotle's ethics, and her political theory "is of little interest" because it is marred by an "ill-thought out and unsystematic" effort to reconcile her hostility to the state with her rejection of anarchism. the journal of ayn rand studies, a multidisciplinary, peer-reviewed academic journal devoted to the study of rand and her ideas, was established in 1999. r. w. bradford, stephen d. cox, and chris matthew sciabarra were its founding co-editors. in a 2010 essay for the cato institute, libertarian philosopher michael huemer argued very few people find rand's ideas convincing, especially her ethics. he attributed the attention she receives to her being a "compelling writer", especially as a novelist, noting that atlas shrugged outsells rand's non-fiction works and the works of other philosophers of classical

liberalism. in 2012, the pennsylvania state university press agreed to take over publication of the journal of ayn rand studies, and the university of pittsburgh press launched an "ayn rand society philosophical studies" series based on the society's proceedings. the fall 2012 update to the entry about rand in the stanford encyclopedia of philosophy said that "only a few professional philosophers have taken her work seriously". that same year, political scientist alan wolfe dismissed rand as a "nonperson" among academics, an attitude that writer ben murnane later described as "the traditional academic view" of rand. to her fiction academic consideration of rand as a literary figure during her life was even more limited than the discussion of her philosophy. mimi reisel gladstein could not find any scholarly

articles about rand's novels when she began researching her in 1973, and only three such articles appeared during the rest of the 1970s. since her death, scholars of english and american literature have continued largely to ignore her work, although attention to her literary work has increased since the 1990s. several academic book series about important authors cover rand and her works. these include twayne's united states authors (ayn rand by james t. baker), twayne's masterwork studies (the fountainhead: an american novel by den uyl and atlas shrugged: manifesto of the mind by gladstein), and re-reading the canon (feminist interpretations of ayn rand, edited by gladstein and sciabarra), as well as in popular study guides like cliffsnotes and sparknotes. in the literary encyclopedia entry for rand written in

2001, john david lewis declared that "rand wrote the most intellectually challenging fiction of her generation." in 2019, lisa duggan described rand's fiction as popular and influential on many readers, despite being easy to criticize for "her cartoonish characters and melodramatic plots, her rigid moralizing, her middle- to lowbrow aesthetic preferences... and philosophical strivings". objectivist movement after the closure of the nathaniel branden institute, the objectivist movement continued in other forms. in the 1970s, leonard peikoff began delivering courses on objectivism. in 1979, objectivist writer peter schwartz started a newsletter called the intellectual activist, which rand endorsed. she also endorsed the objectivist forum, a bimonthly magazine founded by objectivist philosopher harry binswanger,

which ran from 1980 to 1987. in 1985, peikoff worked with businessman ed snider to establish the ayn rand institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting rand's ideas and works. in 1990, after an ideological disagreement with peikoff, philosopher david kelley founded the institute for objectivist studies, now known as the atlas society. in 2001, historian john mccaskey organized the anthem foundation for objectivist scholarship, which provides grants for scholarly work on objectivism in academia. selected works fiction and drama: night of january 16th (performed 1934, published 1968) we the living (1936, revised 1959) anthem (1938, revised 1946) the unconquered (performed 1940, published 2014) the fountainhead (1943) atlas shrugged (1957) the early ayn rand (1984) ideal (2015) non-fiction:

for the new intellectual (1961) the virtue of selfishness (1964) capitalism: the unknown ideal (1966, expanded 1967) the romantic manifesto (1969, expanded 1975) the new left (1971, expanded 1975) introduction to objectivist epistemology (1979, expanded 1990) philosophy: who needs it (1982) letters of ayn rand (1995) journals of ayn rand (1997) notes references works cited reprinted from esquire, july 1961. external links frequently asked questions about ayn rand from the ayn rand institute rand's papers at the library of congress ayn rand lexicon searchable database "writings of ayn rand" from c-span's american writers: a journey

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alain connes (; born 1 april 1947) is a french mathematician, and a theoretical physicist, known for his contributions to the study of operator algebras and noncommutative geometry. he is a professor at the college de france, ihes, ohio state university and vanderbilt university. he was awarded the fields medal in 1982. career connes was an invited professor at the conservatoire national des arts et metiers (2000). research alain connes studies operator algebras. in his early work on von neumann algebras in the 1970s, he succeeded in obtaining the almost complete classification of injective factors. he also formulated the connes embedding problem. following this, he made contributions in operator k-theory and index theory, which culminated in the baumconnes conjecture. he also introduced cyclic cohomology in

the early 1980s as a first step in the study of noncommutative differential geometry. he was a member of bourbaki. connes has applied his work in areas of mathematics and theoretical physics, including number theory, differential geometry and particle physics. awards and honours connes was awarded the fields medal in 1982, the crafoord prize in 2001 and the gold medal of the cnrs in 2004. he was an invited speaker at the icm in 1974 at vancouver and in 1986 at berkeley and a plenary speaker at the icm in 1978 at helsinki. he is a member of the french academy of sciences and several foreign academies and societies, including the danish academy of sciences, norwegian academy of sciences, russian academy of sciences, and us national academy of sciences. books alain connes and matilde marcolli, noncommutative

geometry, quantum fields and motives, colloquium publications, american mathematical society, 2007, alain connes, andre lichnerowicz, and marcel paul schutzenberger, triangle of thought, translated by jennifer gage, american mathematical society, 2001, jean-pierre changeux, and alain connes, conversations on mind, matter, and mathematics, translated by m. b. debevoise, princeton university press, 1998, alain connes, noncommutative geometry, academic press, 1994, see also bostconnes system cyclic category cyclic homology factor (functional analysis) higgs boson c*-algebra noncommutative quantum field theory m-theory groupoid spectral triple criticism of non-standard analysis riemann hypothesis references external links alain connes official web site containing downloadable papers, and his

book non-commutative geometry, . alain connes' standard model an interview with alain connes and a discussion about it 1947 births living people 20th-century french mathematicians foreign associates of the national academy of sciences 21st-century french mathematicians college de france faculty institute for advanced study visiting scholars fields medalists mathematical analysts differential geometers ecole normale superieure alumni vanderbilt university faculty foreign members of the russian academy of sciences members of the french academy of sciences members of the norwegian academy of science and letters members of the royal danish academy of sciences and letters clay research award recipients

allan dwan (born joseph aloysius dwan; april 3, 1885 december 28, 1981) was a pioneering canadian-born american motion picture director, producer, and screenwriter. early life born joseph aloysius dwan in toronto, ontario, canada, dwan, was the younger son of commercial traveler of woolen clothing joseph michael dwan (18571917) and his wife mary jane dwan, nee hunt. the family moved to the united states when he was seven years old on december 4, 1892 by ferry from windsor to detroit, according to his naturalization petition of august 1939. his elder brother, leo garnet dwan (18831964), became a physician. allan dwan studied engineering at the university of notre dame and then worked for a lighting company in chicago. he had a strong interest in the fledgling motion picture industry, and when essanay studios

offered him the opportunity to become a scriptwriter, he took the job. at that time, some of the east coast movie makers began to spend winters in california where the climate allowed them to continue productions requiring warm weather. soon, a number of movie companies worked there year-round, and in 1911, dwan began working part-time in hollywood. while still in new york, in 1917 he was the founding president of the east coast chapter of the motion picture directors association. career dwan operated flying a studios in la mesa, california from august 1911 to july 1912. flying a was one of the first motion pictures studios in california history. on august 12, 2011, a plaque was unveiled on the wolff building at third avenue and la mesa boulevard commemorating dwan and the flying a studios origins in la mesa,

california. after making a series of westerns and comedies, dwan directed fellow canadian-american mary pickford in several very successful movies as well as her husband, douglas fairbanks, notably in the acclaimed 1922 robin hood. dwan directed gloria swanson in eight feature films, and one short film made in the short-lived sound-on-film process phonofilm. this short, also featuring thomas meighan and henri de la falaise, was produced as a joke, for the april 26, 1925 "lambs' gambol" for the lambs, with the film showing swanson crashing the all-male club. following the introduction of the talkies, dwan directed child-star shirley temple in heidi (1937) and rebecca of sunnybrook farm (1938). dwan helped launch the career of two other successful hollywood directors, victor fleming, who went on to direct the