Jean-Blaise Grize will ever be one of the most important logicians in the world. His studies have been providing fondamental contributions to genetic epistemology and argumentation studies. As Emeritus Professor of the University of Neuchâtel, he worked mainly on epistémology, logic and psycholinguistics. He conceived natural logic as a logic field and, in this endeavour, counted on the collaboration of Marie-Jeanne Borel and mainly on that of Professor Denis Miéville who inherited his Chair and the direction of his research. Professor Grize passed away on the 3rd of August 2013.
Biography
Son of Jean Grize, a school principal, and Louise Dällenbach, Jean-Blaise Grize was born in Villars-Burquin on the 16th of March 1922, in Switzerland. He moved later with his family to the township of Neuchâtel. Jean-Blaise Grize studied mathematics and graduated from the universitites of Neuchâtel and Louvain. He obtained his PhD in 1954 from the University of Neuchâtel.
He started his career as lecturer at the Superior School of Commerce and the Gymnasium of Neuchâtel entre 1947 et 1960. After that he became lecturer of logic between 1958 et 1964, professor at the University of Geneva from 1964 to 1968. He also worked from 1958 to 1968 at the International Centre of Genetic Epistemology, directed by Jean Piaget. Later, Professor Grize returned to the University of Neuchâtel. In 1969, he launched and directed the world known Semiological Research Centre. Later, he became president of the University of Neuchâtel, from 1975 to1979. He also taught at the universities of Besançon, Fribourg, Lausanne and the Practical School of Higher Education of Paris, and continue collaborating with the University of Geneva. Because of his contributions, he got many important awards such as the title of Doctor Horis Causa from the universities of Besançon (1982), Geneva (1987) and Paris-Nord (1989).