Seymour Papert

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Seymour Papert : biography

March 1, 1928 –

Accident in Hanoi

While attending the 17th ICMI Study conference in Hanoi, Papert (then aged 78) was crossing a road near his hotel, on Tuesday December 5, 2006, with his colleague and former student, Uri Wilensky. They had crossed most of the way to the other side when Papert was struck by a motorcycle.

Papert underwent emergency brain surgery at the French Hospital of Hanoi on Wednesday December 6 to remove the blood clot that had formed. By the evening of Tuesday December 12, he was in stable but critical condition. Experts feared a deterioration if a MEDEVAC could not be flown as quickly as possible to either Paris or Boston, the only two hospital locations with the necessary expertise for the much needed specialist neuro-intensive care. There was at the time no mission compliant, long range Ambulance ICU Jet anywhere available, except for one of four Swiss Air Ambulance Challenger Jets, based half way around the globe at the REGA HQ, Zurich International Airport in Switzerland.

On December 16, 2006 he was transferred by the highly specialized, ICU equipped, Swiss Air Ambulance Bombardier Challenger Jet http://www.rega.ch/. This reportedly was made possible and organized by the Swiss banker, Pascal Najadi, who was able to convince the REGA Flight Operations over the phone from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, (he was an active patron of the REGA Swiss Air Ambulance) to swiftly approve the decision to fly without any payment guarantees. They were able to assemble within 48 hours the necessary flight plan, specialized doctors, logistics and Vietnam airspace (Northern Sector) entry clearances for the Jet to take off from Zurich HQ, via Lahore to Hanoi. From there, they proceeded with the critical patient in full ICU care of specialized Swiss doctors and immediate family on board, via Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Edmonton to Boston, Massachusetts, where the plane was met by US Customs (with the help of Senator John Kerry). Papert was transferred straight from the tarmac to the Mass General Hospital’s neuro-intensive care unit, attended by Dr. William Curry, Dr. Lee Schwam, and Dr. Matsuza for immediate and critical specialist care.

The flight crew of the Swiss Ambulance Challenger Jet had to pay special attention to ultra soft landings at fuel stops and special climb step procedures, so as not to harm the patient’s critical condition during the long-haul transfer flight. The doctors concluded that the patient was extremely stable during the flight thanks to the careful handling of the flight operation. The only other capable hospital in the world equipped for the critical specialized neuro-intensive care needed in Papert’s case, was the American Hospital in Paris, but Boston was chosen due to its proximity to his home in Maine.

On January 23, 2007 Papert was transferred to a hospital in his home state of Maine. In March 2007, he suffered an attack of septicemia, which required treatment in the hospital until May. Another problem occurred in April, when he had to have a heart valve replaced because of the septicemia. , he had fully recovered from the septicemia and heart operation, and could think clearly, walk "almost unaided", and communicate. However, he still had "some complicated speech problems", and was still undergoing extensive rehabilitation at home. () (aka. the Seymour Papert Institute) (verified through the IRS as being a 501(c)3, as they claim)

To aid him in his recovery, Papert’s rehabilitation team used some of the very principles of experiential, hands-on learning that he had pioneered.

Early years and education

Papert attended the University of the Witwatersrand, receiving a B.A. in 1949 and a PhD in mathematics in 1952. He then went on to receive another PhD, also in mathematics, at Cambridge University in 1959, where he was supervised by Frank Smithies.Papert, Seymour A. in American Men and Women of Science, R.R. Bowker. (1998-99, 20th ed). p. 1056. He was a leading figure in the revolutionary socialist circle around Socialist Review while living in London in the 1950s.Jim Higgins: "More Years for the Locust: The Origins of the SWP" Published by IS Group, London, 1997. Chapter 5 page 1 "Another South African, Seymour Pa pert – a man of considerable talent … was recruited by Kidron and, for a few years, he added considerably to the impact of Socialist Review. His review of John Strachey’s, at that time very influential book, Contemporary Capitalism, for example, is an excellent attack on Strachey and, incidentally, one of the better statements on the permanent arms economy."

Career

Papert worked as a researcher in a variety of places, including St. John’s College, Cambridge, the Henri Poincaré Institute at the University of Paris, the University of Geneva and the National Physical Laboratory in London before becoming a research associate at MIT in 1963. He held this position until 1967, when he became professor of applied math and director of the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, until 1981; he also served as Cecil & Ida Green professor of education at MIT from 1974-1981.

Personal life

Papert’s third wife was Sherry Turkle, and together they wrote the influential paper "Epistemological Pluralism and the Revaluation of the Concrete."

Papert is married to Suzanne Massie Papert, who is a Russian scholar and author of Pavlovsk, Life of a Russian Palace and Land of the Firebird.. Accessed April 19, 2009.