Hans Jonas

German-born American Jewish philosopher whose writings were very influential in different spheres. For example, The Gnostic Religion, based on his early research on the Gnosis and first published in 1958, was for many years the standard work in English on the subject of Gnosticism. The Imperative of Responsibility (German 1979, English 1984) centers on social and ethical problems created by technology. Jonas insists that human survival depends on our efforts to care for our planet and its future. While The Imperative of Responsibility has been credited with catalyzing the environmental movement in Germany, his work The Phenomenon of Life (1966) forms the philosophical undergirding of one major school of bioethics in America.

From 1955 to 1976 he was the Alvin Johnson Professor of Philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York City. He died at his home in New Rochelle, New York, on 5 February 1993, aged 89.