Charles S. Pearce

Charles Sanders Peirce (1839–1914) was an American philosopher, logician, and scientist widely regarded as a founder of pragmatism and a major figure in semiotics. He worked for many years as a scientist with the U.S. Coast Survey, contributing to research in measurement and astronomy while developing influential ideas in logic and the philosophy of science. Peirce introduced key concepts such as abductive reasoning and advanced the study of signs through his triadic theory of meaning. Although much of his work was scattered in manuscripts during his lifetime, his writings later shaped modern analytic philosophy, linguistics, and communication theory.