The Logician Who Gave Truth a Mathematical Definition

Alfred Tarski transformed mathematical logic by giving a precise semantic account of truth for formal languages and by helping establish model theory as a major discipline. Born in Warsaw, he studied under leading members of the Polish school of logic and earned his doctorate in 1924. A trip to the United States in 1939 saved him from occupied Poland, and he later joined Berkeley, where he created an influential research community. This documentary follows his work on truth, consequence, geometry and algebra.

Tarski's definition of truth showed how semantic ideas could be treated with mathematical rigor while avoiding famous logical paradoxes. His methods became central to model theory, formal semantics, philosophy of language and the foundations of computer science. His life also carries the drama of exile and rebuilding: separated from his family during the war, he established one of the world's great schools of logic in California. This documentary explains why modern reasoning still bears his imprint.