Noam Chomsky, a renowned linguist and political activist, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 7, 1928. In 1955, he received his Ph.D from the University of Pennsylvania; he conducted much of the related research at Harvard University between 1951 and 1955. Since completion of his graduate work, Chomsky has taught at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he has held the Ferrari P. Ward Chair of Modern Language and Linguistics since 1965. Among his many accomplishments, he is most famous for his work on generative grammar, which developed from his interest in modern logic and mathematical foundations.

Chomsky has had a long involvement in political activism, generally leaning towards a socialist and anarchist perspective. He became known for his opposition to the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War during the late 1960’s.

In 1969, he published a book of essays, “American Power and the New Mandarins,” which is considered to be one of the most substantial arguments ever against U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

His subsequent written works and lectures continue to expose the hypocrisy of U.S. foreign policy and the detrimental role of large corporations and the mainstream media.

Seminal books by Chomsky include:

Towards a New Cold War (1982)
Pirates and Emperors (1986)
On Power and Ideology (1987)
Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies (1989)
World Orders, Old and New (1994)

Chomsky continues to be an outspoken critic of the current world order, and of the U.S. government in particular, as witnessed by his incisive statements following the September 11th attacks.

Noam Chomsky has written dozens of books and released about a dozen CDs as well, some via AK Press. His lectures draw over 2,000 people and are usually booked 1 year in advance.