Hans-Joachim Niemann (born 26 April 1941 in Kiel) is a German philosopher and PhD chemist,Title of his doctoral thesis: Zur kinetischen Analyse spektral-photometrisch verfolgter Photoreaktionen – Methodik und Anwendung der formalen Integration, University of Tübingen (Germany) 1972. who has become known especially as a translator and editor of works by Karl Popper, including first editions and first translations. As a scholarly writer, he first published scientific papers, then many essays and several books on Karl Popper's philosophy and Critical Rationalism, including a 400-page Lexicon of Critical Rationalism.Niemann (2004), with about 1000 keywords. His Popper studies helped to establish Karl Popper as a major ethicist and as an important biophilosopher.
Life Niemann studied from 1962 to 1964 at Kiel University, LMU Munich, and Marburg University Philosophy and Physics. In 1965, he began studying Chemistry at the University of Tübingen and graduated in 1972 with the Dr. rer. nat. degree. He then researched and published on light-induced chemical reactions.Niemann in ORCID and Niemann in ResearchGate, each covering the years 1970–1974. Based on the knowledge acquired in the process, he became head of the unit for uranium enrichment using laser light (uranium laser isotope separation) at Kraftwerk Union, a joint subsidiary of Siemens and AEG. As inventor and co-inventor, he was granted about thirty domestic and foreign patents.Niemann in ORCID and ResearchGate, see the years 1974–1985.
In 1984, Niemann switched from technology and natural science to philosophy. Since 1991, now in his sixth decade, he has published five books and more than a hundred essays on Critical Rationalism and translated books and writings of Karl Popper into German.Publication lists in ORCID directory and in ResearchGate, see the years 1991 and later.
This was preceded by studies (1984–1990, partly private, partly at the University of Erlangen) of Analytic Philosophy and Critical Rationalism. He then became an assistant lecturer at the University of Bamberg (1993–1999), where he taught Vienna Circle, Critical Rationalism (Karl Popper, Hans Albert) and Popper's critics (Thomas Kuhn, Paul Feyerabend, Imre Lakatos), as well as the ethics of Bertrand Russell, John Leslie Mackie and Hans Jonas. During the summer semester of 1994, he gave a guest lecture on Rational Decision Making at the University of Passau.
During a visit to Kenley/UK, Niemann met Karl Popper personally in February 1994. His correspondence with Popper (1991–1994) is documented in the Karl-Popper-Archive and accessible in ResearchGate.German parts translated into English downloadable in ResearchGate. Popper judged his work kindly. About his 1992 book manuscript Vernunft als Wille zur Problemlösung (Reason as the Will to Solve Problems)published in 1993 under the new title Die Strategie der Vernunft (The Strategy of Reason) by Vieweg, Braunschweig-Wiesbaden Popper wrote: "It seems to me excellent; and I wish to congratulate you heartily on it... fundamentally everything you have to say seems to me excellent – hitting the nail on the head – and not accidental! (Also, it is all very original.)"translated from German, documented in Karl Popper Archive, Box 554, Folder 3, Sheet 16 dated 4/14/1992; also downloadable from ResearchGate, see above. Popper also praised Niemann's simple and unpretentious style."I found your book [Die Strategie der Vernunft 1993] today – among mountains of letters, dissertations, books sent to me. I looked at it for about 2 hours, and I like it very much because of its simple and unpretentious style. This is rare in German books – even those advocating critical rationalism." Karl Popper, translated from German, in: Karl Popper-Archive of Klagenfurt University Library, Box 554, Folder 3, Sheet 8 dated 14. 4. 1992.
Popper biographer Friedel WeinertEmeritus at the University of Bradford/UK, a philosopher, sociologist, and physicist sees Niemann, along with David Miller, Jeremy Shearmur, and Hans Albert, among the few who currently continue Critical Rationalism."Critical Rationalism may have lost its influence among professional philosophers. But David Miller, Jeremy Shearmur, Hans Albert and Hans-Joachim Niemann keep the flame alive.", F. Weinert in Karl Popper. Professional Philosopher and Public Intellectual, Springer 2023, p. 221 Reinhard NeckEmeritus at the University of Klagenfurt calls Niemann "one of the most active writers and researchers in the field of critical rationalism."Reinhard Neck in his introduction to a H.-J. Niemann, guest lecture on Nov. 20, 2019 at the University Library, University of Klagenfurt.
Niemann is co-founder of the Society for Critical Philosophy Nuremberg.He lives in Poxdorf near Erlangen (Germany).
Interviews Erlanger Tagblatt, Saturday 23. 8. 2008, section Erlangen, page 5, (Univ.-Bibliothek Erlangen: H05/Film.Z 120). Giuseppe Franco, Ethik und Alltagsdenken. Ein Gespräch mit Hans-Joachim Niemann über den Kritischen Rationalismus, Part 1: Aufklärung und Kritik 1 (2009), pp. 152–170. Part 2: Aufklärung und Kritik 2 (2009), pp. 107–123. Both parts in: G. Franco (ed.), Dem Anderen Recht geben, Klagenfurt-Vienna: kitab 2010, pp. 110–165.
Research Popper as a major ethicist Karl Popper did not write a book on ethics. Niemann proved, based on archival material and many essays scattered throughout Popper's writings, that he, contrary to his reputation,"As things stand, there is no reason to suppose that rational ethics is possible", wrote one of Popper's best scholars, Herbert Keuth, in his essay 'Ist eine rationale Ethik möglich?' (Is rational ethics possible?), Logos, N. F. 1 (3) 1994, pp. 288–305, the citation p. 300. This widely held view, which goes back to Jürgen Habermas, is discussed in H.-J. Niemann, Gibt es eine rationale Ethik oder gibt es sie nicht? (Is rational ethics possible or not?) Niemann (2008), 203–225, on Habermas see p. 216. was an important ethical theorist who advocated three major ethical concepts: (1) Negative Utilitarianism, i.e., avoiding concrete suffering instead of striving for indefinable happiness. (2) Epistemological ethics, i.e., first solve the factual problems associated with any ethical problem in order to avoid discussions about values as much as possible. And (3) problem-oriented ethics, i.e., treating values, moral laws, and principles of action as objective attempts to solve problems.H.-J. Niemann, Karl Popper's Three Theoretical Ethics (preprint), and an earlier version in German in Franco (2019), pp. 553–573. DOI 10.1007/978-3-658-16242-9_39-1.
Niemann has also summarized and commented on Popper's moral philosophy from many of his scattered contributions. He counts Popper among the great moral philosophers.Niemann on Popper's Practical Morality and on Popper's Morality and Ethics.
Popper as an important biophilosopher In 2012–2022, Niemann worked out another lesser known side of Popper: Karl Popper as a major biophilosopher. He showed this in his English written book Karl Popper and the Two New Secrets of Life (Niemann (2014)) and in many papers in which he refers to and comments on Popper's biological work.H.-J. Niemann on Popper's biophilosophy (translation in brackets): (i) Geist als ein Kraftfeld (Mind as a force field), Aufklärung und Kritik 4 (2012), pp. 13–22. – (ii) Chronologie eines lebenslangen Interesses (Chronology of a lifelong interest), in Popper (2012), editor's afterword, sections 25–41. – (iii) Alle Lebewesen steuern ihre eigene Evolution (All living things control their own evolution), Aufklärung und Kritik 1 (2013), pp. 21–39. – (iv) Karl Popper, die Mühle bei Hunstanton und die Anfänge der Molekularbiologie (Karl Popper, the mill at Hunstanton, and the beginnings of molecular biology), Aufklärung und Kritik 2 (2013), 7–34. – (v) Karl Popper und die biologischen Ursprünge von Aktivität, Wissen und Freiheit (Karl Popper and the biological origins of activity, knowledge, and freedom), Aufklärung und Kritik 1 (2014), pp. 7–22. – (vi) Nachwort des Herausgebers (Editor's afterword) in Popper (2015), pp. 445–477, esp. sections 1–2, 4–5, 12, 15, 18. – (vii) Alles Leben ist Wissen und Wollen. Karl Poppers Evolutionsbiologie (All life is knowledge and will. Karl Popper's evolutionary biology), in: R. Neck (ed.), Evolution, Natur, Mensch und Gesellschaft (Evolution, Nature, Man, Society), Peter Lang 2016, pp. 239–261. – (viii) Niemann (2017), esp. sections 2.2 to 2.4 and 3. – (ix) Popper, Darwin und die Biologie (Popper, Darwin, and biology). In: Franco (2019), pp. 359–380; also as an English and revised version: (x) Popper, Darwin, and Biology, in: Zuzana Parusniková, David Merrit (eds.), Karl Popper: his Science and his Philosophy, Springer 2021, pp. 231–256. – (xi) H.-J. Niemann, 'Offene Forschungsprogramme' (open research programs), Nachwort des Herausgebers (editor's afterword) in: Popper (2022), pp. 617–653, esp. sections 2.1, 2.3, 3; as well as in Popper (2014). In these studies, Niemann draws not only on Popper's previously known work, but also on seven German first publications translated and edited by himEnglish in brackets: (i) Karl Popper, Die Beziehung zwischen Bewusstsein und Gehirn (The relation between consciousness and the brain), with co-authors B. I. B. Lindahl and P. Århem, Aufklärung und Kritik 4 (2010) pp. 9–21. – (ii) Das Geist-Gehirn-Problem (The mind-brain problem), Aufklärung und Kritik 4 (2012), pp. 7–12. – (iii) Eine Neuinterpretation des Darwinismus. Die erste Medawar Lecture 1986 (A new interpretation of Darwinism. The first Medawar Lecture 1986), Aufklärung und Kritik 1 (2013), pp. 7–20. – (iv) Die Natürliche Selektion und die Emergenz des Geistes (Natural selection and the emergence of mind), Aufklärung und Kritik 4 (2019), pp. 7–25. – (v) Der Platz des Geistes in der Natur (The place of mind in nature), Popper (2022), appendix 5. – (vi) Evolutionäre Erkenntnistheorie (Evolutionary epistemology), Popper (2022), appendix 6. – (vii) Eine Weiterentwicklung des Darwinismus (A further development of Darwinism), Popper (2022), Appendix 7 as well as on new archival material from which he edited and published for the first time four of Popper's English writings concerning biology.Popper (2014), Appendix A: K. Popper, A New Interpretation of Darwinism. The First Medawar Lecture (1986). – Appendix B: K. Popper, Lamarckism and DNA (1973). – Appendix C: K. Popper, A World without Natural Selection but with Problem Solving. – Appendix D: K. Popper, Letter to a Friend (1989).
The first edition of Popper's Medawar Lecture Niemann's work was well received, even by biologists,Frantisek Baluska, Sir Patrick Bateson, Keith Baverstock, M. Polo Camacho, Eva Jablonka, Kalevi Kull, Marion Lamb, Natalie Gontier, Peter Marsch, Denis Noble, Raymond Noble, Pippa J. Madgwick, and others. especially the above-mentioned 2014 published book in which Popper's long kept closed First Medawar Lecture 1986 is reprinted. Popper had delivered the lecture titled A New Interpretation of Darwinism to the Royal Society in the presence of four Nobel laureates.Peter Medawar, Peter Mitchell, Max Perutz, George Porter. It had caused a great stir at that time, partly because one of the Nobel laureates, Max Perutz, got into an argument with Popper after the lecture about whether or not biochemical and biological processes could be explained in purely chemical-physical terms.An account of this in: Max Perutz, A new view of Darwinism, New Scientist 2 (1986), pp. 36–38, and in: Niemann (2014), section 13: 'The clash with Nobel Prize Winner Max Perutz'.