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Rene Descartes was one of the most influential thinkers in the history of the philosophy. Born in 1596, he lived to become a great mathematician, scientist, and philosopher. In fact, he became one of the central intellectual figures of the sixteen hundreds. He is believed by some to be the father of modern philosophy, although he was hampered by living in a time when other prominent scientists, such as Galileo, were persecuted for their discoveries and …

…faulty. Kant calls him a “problematic idealist” for whom “there is only one empirical assertion that is indubitably certain, namely that ‘I am’” Still, even if this is the only true maxim that Descartes discovered, it is indeed a remarkable achievement. Schopenhauer credits Descartes for discovering the “only correct starting point … in all philosophy.” Charles Sanders Peirce, a great American philosopher, said “With Descartes, philosophy put away childish things and became a conceited young man.”