In science, paradigm ( /ˈpærədaɪm/) describes distinct concepts or thought patterns in any scientific discipline or other epistemological context.

Scientific paradigm[link]

The historian of science Thomas Kuhn gave paradigm its contemporary meaning when he adopted the word to refer to the set of practices that define a scientific discipline at any particular period of time. Kuhn himself came to prefer the terms exemplar and normal science, which have more precise philosophical meanings. However in his book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions Kuhn defines a scientific paradigm as: "universally recognized scientific achievements that, for a time, provide model problems and solutions for a community of researchers", i.e.,

• what is to be observed and scrutinized
• the kind of questions that are supposed to be asked and probed for answers in relation to this subject
• how these questions are to be structured
• how the results of scientific investigations should be interpreted

Alternatively, the Oxford English Dictionary defines paradigm as "a pattern or model, an exemplar." Thus an additional component of Kuhn's definition of paradigm is:

• how is an experiment to be conducted, and what equipment is available to conduct the experiment.

Thus, within normal science, the paradigm is the set of exemplary experiments that are likely to be copied or emulated. In this scientific context, the prevailing paradigm often represents a more specific way of viewing reality, or limitations on acceptable programs for future research, than the more general scientific method.

A currently accepted paradigm would be the standard model of physics. The scientific method would allow for orthodox scientific investigations into phenomena which might contradict or disprove the standard model; however grant funding would be proportionately more difficult to obtain for such experiments, depending on the degree of deviation from the accepted standard model theory which the experiment would be expected to test for. To illustrate the point, an experiment to test for the mass of neutrinos or the decay of protons (small departures from the model) would be more likely to receive money than experiments to look for the violation of the conservation of momentum, or ways to engineer reverse time travel.

One important aspect of Kuhn's paradigms is that the paradigms are incommensurable, meaning two paradigms cannot be reconciled with each other because they cannot be subjected to the same common standard of comparison. That is, no meaningful comparison between them is possible without fundamental modification of the concepts that are an intrinsic part of the paradigms being compared. This way of looking at the concept of "paradigm" creates a paradox of sorts, since competing paradigms are in fact constantly being measured against each other. (Nonetheless, competing paradigms are not fully intelligible solely within the context of their own conceptual frameworks.) For this reason, paradigm as a concept in the philosophy of science might more meaningfully be defined as a self-reliant explanatory model or conceptual framework. This definition makes it clear that the real barrier to comparison is not necessarily the absence of common units of measurement, but an absence of mutually compatible or mutually intelligible concepts. Under this system, a new paradigm which replaces an old paradigm is not necessarily better, because the criteria of judgment are controlled by the paradigm itself, and by the conceptual framework which defines the paradigm and gives it its explanatory value.^[1][2]

A more disparaging term groupthink, and the term mindset, have somewhat similar meanings that apply to smaller and larger scale examples of disciplined thought. Michel Foucault used the terms episteme and discourse, mathesis and taxinomia, for aspects of a "paradigm" in Kuhn's original sense.

Simple common analogy: A simplified analogy for paradigm is a habit of reasoning, or "the box" in the commonly used phrase "thinking outside the box". Thinking inside the box is analogous with normal science. The box encompasses the thinking of normal science and thus the box is analogous with paradigm. "Thinking outside the box" would be what Kuhn calls revolutionary science. Revolutionary science is usually unsuccessful, and very rarely leads to new paradigms. However, when they are successful they lead to large scale changes in the scientific worldview. When these large scale shifts in the scientific view are implemented and accepted by the majority, it will then become "the box" and science will progress within it.

Paradigm shifts[link]

In The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Kuhn wrote that "Successive transition from one paradigm to another via revolution is the usual developmental pattern of mature science." (p. 12)

Paradigm shifts tend to be most dramatic in sciences that appear to be stable and mature, as in physics at the end of the 19th century. At that time, a statement generally attributed to physicist Lord Kelvin famously claimed, "There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now. All that remains is more and more precise measurement."^[3] Five years later, Albert Einstein published his paper on special relativity, which challenged the very simple set of rules laid down by Newtonian mechanics, which had been used to describe force and motion for over two hundred years. In this case, the new paradigm reduces the old to a special case in the sense that Newtonian mechanics is still a good model for approximation for speeds that are slow compared to the speed of light. Philosophers and historians of science, including Kuhn himself, ultimately accepted a modified version of Kuhn's model, which synthesizes his original view with the gradualist model that preceded it. Kuhn's original model is now generally seen as too limited.

Kuhn's idea was itself revolutionary in its time, as it caused a major change in the way that academics talk about science. Thus, it could be argued that it caused or was itself part of a "paradigm shift" in the history and sociology of science. However, Kuhn would not recognize such a paradigm shift. Being in the social sciences, people can still use earlier ideas to discuss the history of science.

The concept of paradigm and the social sciences[link]

Kuhn himself did not consider the concept of paradigm as appropriate for the social sciences. He explains in his preface to The Structure of Scientific Revolutions that he concocted the concept of paradigm precisely in order to distinguish the social from the natural sciences (p.x). He wrote this book at the Palo Alto Center for Scholars, surrounded by social scientists, when he observed that they were never in agreement on theories or concepts. He explains that he wrote this book precisely to show that there are no, nor can there be any, paradigms in the social sciences. Mattei Dogan, a French sociologist, in his article "Paradigms in the [Social Sciences]," develops Kuhn's original thesis that there are no paradigms at all in the social sciences since the concepts are polysemic, the deliberate mutual ignorance between scholars and the proliferation of schools in these disciplines. Dogan provides many examples of the non-existence of paradigms in the social sciences in his essay, particularly in sociology, political science and political anthropology.

[edit] Paradigm paralysis

Perhaps the greatest barrier to a paradigm shift, in some cases, is the reality of paradigm paralysis: the inability or refusal to see beyond the current models of thinking.^[4] This is similar to what psychologists term Confirmation bias.

Examples include rejection of Galileo's theory of a heliocentric universe, the discovery of electrostatic photography, xerography and the quartz clock.

Etymology[link]

Paradigm comes from Greek "παράδειγμα" (paradeigma), "pattern, example, sample"^[5] from the verb "παραδείκνυμι" (paradeiknumi), "exhibit, represent, expose"^[6] and that from "παρά" (para), "beside, beyond"^[7] + "δείκνυμι" (deiknumi), "to show, to point out".^[8]

The original Greek term παράδειγμα (paradeigma) was used in Greek texts such as Plato's Timaeus (28A) as the model or the pattern that the Demiurge (god) used to create the cosmos. The term had a technical meaning in the field of grammar: the 1900 Merriam-Webster dictionary defines its technical use only in the context of grammar or, in rhetoric, as a term for an illustrative parable or fable. In linguistics, Ferdinand de Saussure used paradigm to refer to a class of elements with similarities.

The Merriam-Webster Online dictionary defines this usage as "a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations and the experiments performed in support of them are formulated; broadly: a philosophical or theoretical framework of any kind."^[9]

Other uses[link]

Handa, M.L. (1986) introduced the idea of "social paradigm" in the context of social sciences. He identified the basic components of a social paradigm. Like Kuhn, Handa addressed the issue of changing paradigm; the process popularly known as "paradigm shift". In this respect, he focused on social circumstances that precipitate such a shift and the effects of the shift on social institutions, including the institution of education. This broad shift in the social arena, in turn, changes the way the individual perceives reality.

Another use of the word paradigm is in the sense of "worldview". For example, in social science, the term is used to describe the set of experiences, beliefs and values that affect the way an individual perceives reality and responds to that perception. Social scientists have adopted the Kuhnian phrase "paradigm shift" to denote a change in how a given society goes about organizing and understanding reality. A “dominant paradigm” refers to the values, or system of thought, in a society that are most standard and widely held at a given time. Dominant paradigms are shaped both by the community’s cultural background and by the context of the historical moment. The following are conditions that facilitate a system of thought to become an accepted dominant paradigm:

• Professional organizations that give legitimacy to the paradigm
• Dynamic leaders who introduce and purport the paradigm
• Journals and editors who write about the system of thought. They both disseminate the information essential to the paradigm and give the paradigm legitimacy
• Government agencies who give credence to the paradigm
• Educators who propagate the paradigm’s ideas by teaching it to students
• Conferences conducted that are devoted to discussing ideas central to the paradigm
• Media coverage
• Lay groups, or groups based around the concerns of lay persons, that embrace the beliefs central to the paradigm
• Sources of funding to further research on the paradigm

The word paradigm is also still used to indicate a pattern or model or an outstandingly clear or typical example or archetype. The term is frequently used in this sense in the design professions. Design Paradigms or archetypes comprise functional precedents for design solutions. The best known references on design paradigms are Design Paradigms: A Sourcebook for Creative Visualization, by Wake, and Design Paradigms by Petroski.

This term is also used in cybernetics. Here it means (in a very wide sense) a (conceptual) protoprogram for reducing the chaotic mass to some form of order. Note the similarities to the concept of entropy in chemistry and physics. A paradigm there would be a sort of prohibition to proceed with any action that would increase the total entropy of the system. In order to create a paradigm, a closed system which would accept any changes is required. Thus a paradigm can be only applied to a system that is not in its final stage.

Notes[link]

See also[link]

Look up paradigm in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Concept
• Conceptual framework
• Conceptual schema
• Contextualism
• Perspectivism
• Programming paradigm
• The history of the various paradigms in evolutionary biology (Wikiversity)
• Metanarrative
• Poststructuralism
• World view

References and links[link]

• Clarke, Thomas and Clegg, Stewart (eds). Changing Paradigms. London: HarperCollins, 2000.ISBN 0-00-638731-4
• Handa, M. L. (1986) "Peace Paradigm: Transcending Liberal and Marxian Paradigms" Paper presented in "International Symposium on Science, Technology and Development, New Delhi, India, March 20–25, 1987, Mimeographed at O.I.S.E., University of Toronto, Canada (1986)
• Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 3rd Ed. Chicago and London: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1996. ISBN 0-226-45808-3 - Google Books Aug. 2011
• Masterman, Margaret, "The Nature of a Paradigm," pp. 59–89 in Imre Lakatos and Alan Musgrave. Criticism and the Growth of Knowledge. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1970. ISBN 0-521-09623-5
• Encyclopædia Britannica, Univ. of Chicago, 2003, ISBN 0-85229-961-3
• Dogan, Mattei., "Paradigms in the Social Sciences," in International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, Volume 16, 2001)
• Paradigm Presentation An interesting look at how a Paradigm is created
• "JSTOR: British Journal of Sociology of Education: Vol. 13, No. 1 (1992), pp. 131-143". http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0142-5692%281992%2913%3A1%3C131%3ATPWRFT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-U. Retrieved 2007-06-18. 
• The Fourth Paradigm: Data-Intensive Scientific Discovery, Microsoft Research, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9825442-0-4 http://fourthparadigm.org

Stephen R. Covey
Born	(1932-10-24) October 24, 1932 (age 79) Salt Lake City, Utah
Education	B.S. MBA DRE
Alma mater	University of Utah Harvard Business School Brigham Young University
Occupation	Author, professional speaker, professor, consultant, management-expert
Spouse	Sandra Covey

Stephen Richards Covey (born October 24, 1932 in Salt Lake City, Utah) is the author of the best-selling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Other books he has written include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, and The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families. In 2004, Covey released The 8th Habit. In 2008, Covey released The Leader In Me—How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. He is a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University.

Early life[link]

Covey is the son of Stephen Glenn Covey and his wife Irene Louise Richards. Louise is the daughter of Stephen L Richards, an apostle and counselor in the first presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints under David O. McKay.^{[citation needed]}

Education[link]

Covey earned a B.S. in business administration from the University of Utah, an MBA from Harvard University, and a Doctor of Religious Education (DRE) from Brigham Young University. Covey is a brother of Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity. He has been awarded ten honorary doctorates.^[1]

Books[link]

[edit] The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey's best-known book, has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide since its first publication in 1989. (The audio version became the first non-fiction audio-book in U.S. publishing history to sell more than one million copies.)^{[citation needed]} Covey argues against what he calls "The Personality Ethic", something he sees as prevalent in many modern self-help books. He instead promotes what he labels "The Character Ethic": aligning one’s values with so-called "universal and timeless" principles. Covey adamantly refuses to conflate principles and values; he sees principles as external natural laws, while values remain internal and subjective. Covey proclaims that values govern people's behavior, but principles ultimately determine the consequences. Covey presents his teachings in a series of habits, manifesting as a progression from dependence via independence to interdependence.

[edit] Follow-ups to The Seven Habits

One of the sequels to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families'

Follow-up titles to The Seven Habits aim both to add to the original and to form a cohesive philosophy on personal, principle-based leadership. One of the popular follow-up titles is The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families which is based on applying the seven habits in family life. These follow-up titles come in the format of audio books as well (such as the title Beyond The 7 Habits). Covey has also written a number of learning-books for children. His son, Sean Covey, has written a version for teens and adults: The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens. This version simplifies Covey's 7 habits in order for younger readers to better understand them.

[edit] The 8th Habit

In 2004, Covey's book The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness was published by Free Press (an imprint of Simon and Schuster). It functions as the sequel to The Seven Habits. Covey claims that effectiveness does not suffice in what he calls "The Knowledge Worker Age". He proclaims that "[t]he challenges and complexity we face today are of a different order of magnitude." The 8th habit essentially urges: "Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs..."

[edit] The Leader in Me

In November 2008, Covey released a new book The Leader in Me—How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. This book tells the story of how extraordinary schools, parents and business leaders are preparing the next generation to meet the great challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century. The Leader in Me shows how one elementary school in Raleigh, North Carolina decided to try incorporating The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and other basic leadership skills into their school’s curriculum in unique and creative ways. Inspired by the amazing success of Principal Muriel Summers and the teachers and staff of A.B. Combs Elementary School in Raleigh, other schools and parents around the world have adopted the approach and have seen remarkable results.^[2]

Other projects[link]

FranklinCovey[link]

Covey established the "Covey Leadership Center" which, in 1997, merged with Franklin Quest to form FranklinCovey, a global professional-services firm and specialty-retailer selling both training and productivity-tools to individuals and to organizations. Their mission statement reads: "We enable greatness in people and organizations everywhere".

In 2009, Covey launched a career development webinar series to help people struggling in the economic downturn. He plans to offer timely and current topics on a regular basis.^{[citation needed]}

Stephen Covey Online Community[link]

In March 2008 Covey launched the Stephen Covey's Online Community. The site is a mash up of online courses, goal management and social networking. Covey uses it as a place to teach his most recent thoughts and ideas on current topics and self leadership, his books as well as goal setting and reaching. The content is shared via videos, podcasts, printable text and online activities. Users are also able to set personal goals, track their progress and share their progress with others within the community.

Utah State University[link]

In February 2010, Covey announced his hire as a professor and first incumbent of the Jon M. Huntsman Presidential Chair in Leadership at the Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University. Huntsman and Covey are longtime friends. At USU, he will teach courses, perform research, and is also helping to establish the Stephen R. Covey Center for Leadership, in order to better train students in innovation and ethics.^[3]

Education initiatives[link]

Covey has developed his 2008 book The Leader in Me into several education-related projects. On April 20, 2010 he made his first post to an education blog entitled Our Children and the Crisis in Education which appears on the Huffington Post news and blog-aggregation website. FranklinCovey has also established a website dedicated exclusively to the Leader In Me concept,^[4] and it holds periodic conferences and workshops to train elementary school administrators who want to integrate the Leader In Me process into their school's academic culture.^[5]

Opposition to same-sex marriage[link]

Stephen Covey has been controversially^[6] active in opposition to same-sex marriage, including giving the keynote address at a $1,000 a plate fund-raiser in Honolulu for Save Traditional Marriage 98 ("STM98"), a political action committee sponsoring a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages.^[7]

Personal[link]

Family[link]

Covey lives with his wife Sandra and their family in Provo, Utah, home to Brigham Young University, where Covey taught prior to the publication of his best-selling book. A father of nine and a grandfather of fifty-two, he received the Fatherhood Award from the National Fatherhood Initiative in 2003.

Religion[link]

Covey is a practicing member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served a two-year mission in England for the LDS Church.^[8] Covey served as the first president of the Irish Mission of the church starting in July 1962.^[9]

When Covey studied as an MBA student at Harvard, he would on occasion preach to crowds on Boston Common.^[10]

Covey has authored several devotional works for Latter-day Saint or Mormon readers, including:

• Spiritual Roots of Human Relations (1970)
• The Divine Center (1982)
• 6 Events: The Restoration Model for Solving Life's Problems (2004).

Honors and awards[link]

• The Thomas More College^{[disambiguation needed ]} Medallion for continuing service to humanity^[11]
• The National Entrepreneur of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurial Leadership^[11]
• The 1994 International Entrepreneur of the Year Award^[11]
• One of Time Magazine's 25 most influential Americans of 1996^[11]
• The Sikh's 1998 International Man of Peace Award^[11]
• 2003 Fatherhood Award from the National Fatherhood Initiative^[12]
• 2004 Golden Gavel award from Toastmasters International^[13]
• Accepted the inaugural Corporate Core Values Award from the California University of Pennsylvania on behalf of the FranklinCovey Corporation^{[citation needed]} at the "national Franklin Covey Conference" (December 2006).^[14]
• Will be inducted into the Utah Valley Entrepreneurial Forum Hall of Fame on November 14, 2009^[15]
• Maharishi Award from Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa
• International Entrepreneur of the Year Award

See also[link]

• Latter-day Saint movement in Ireland.

Bibliography[link]

• Spiritual Roots of Human Relations (1970) (ISBN 0-87579-705-9).
• The Divine Center (1982) (ISBN 1-59038-404-0).
• The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (1989, 2004) (ISBN 0-671-70863-5).
• Principle Centered Leadership (1990) (ISBN 0-671-79280-6).
• First Things First, co-authored with Roger and Rebecca Merrill (1994) (ISBN 0-684-80203-1).
• Living the Seven Habits (2000) (ISBN 0-684-85716-2).
• 6 Events: The Restoration Model for Solving Life's Problems (2004) (ISBN 1-57345-187-8).
• The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness (2004) (ISBN 0-684-84665-9).
• Quest: The Spiritual Path to Success by Stephen R. Covey (Editor) (1997), with Thomas Moore, Mark Victor Hansen, David Whyte, Bernie Siegel, Gabrielle Roth and Marianne Williamson. Simon & Schuster AudioBook ISBN 978-0-671-57484-0
• The Leader in Me: How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child At a Time (2008) (ISBN 1-43910-326-7).
• The 3rd Alternative: Solving Life's Most Difficult Problems (2011) (ISBN 978-1451626261)

References[link]

External links[link]

Find more about Stephen Covey on Wikipedia's sister projects:
	Images and media from Commons
	Quotations from Wikiquote

• Stephen Covey's official site
• FranklinCovey's official site
• ISSSP Profile
• IMNO Interview of Stephen R. Covey
• Global Dharma Center's interview with Stephen Covey on Spiritual Based Leadership
• A Direct Interview with Stephen Covey

Billy Corgan
Corgan playing in Köln, Germany in 2005
Background information
Birth name	William "Billy" Patrick Corgan, Jr.
Born	(1967-03-17) March 17, 1967 (age 45) Elk Grove Village, Illinois, U.S.
Genres	Alternative rock, Grunge
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter, record producer, author
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass, harmonica, ukulele
Years active	1985–present
Labels	Caroline, Virgin, Reprise, Warner Bros.
Associated acts	Smashing Pumpkins, Zwan, Spirits in the Sky, The Jimmy Chamberlin Complex, Starchildren, The Marked, Hole, Courtney Love, New Order, Breaking Benjamin
Website	Billy Corgan on Myspace
Notable instruments
Fender Stratocaster Gibson ES-335

William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. (born March 17, 1967) is an American musician, producer, and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois, in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the addition of bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. The band's direction has largely been driven by Corgan through his confessional lyrics, grandiose production values, and virtuosic musical interplay, notably with Chamberlin. In three years, The Smashing Pumpkins had transformed themselves into a major label success. Strong album sales and large-scale tours propelled the band's increasing fame in the 1990s, while Chamberlin's drug problems escalated until he had to be fired. The Pumpkins continued as a three-piece until Chamberlin rejoined the band in 1999, then broke up in 2000. Corgan started a new band with Chamberlin right away, called Zwan, and after their demise, he released a solo album (The Future Embrace) and a collection of poetry (Blinking with Fists) before setting his sights on reforming the Smashing Pumpkins.

The new version of that band, consisting of Corgan, Chamberlin, and a revolving tour lineup, released an album in 2007 and followed it with extensive touring over the next year and a half. Chamberlin left the Smashing Pumpkins in March 2009, while Corgan has continued to record and tour with a new lineup.

History[link]

1967–87: Childhood and formative years[link]

Corgan was born in Elk Grove Village, Illinois as the oldest son of William Corgan Sr., a blues/rock guitarist, and Martha Louise Maes Corgan Lutz. His parents had one more child, Ricky, before divorcing in 1970.^[1] His father was soon remarried to a flight attendant, and Corgan and his brother went to live with them in Glendale Heights, Illinois.^[2] During this time, Corgan alleges he was subject to much physical and emotional abuse by his stepmother.^[3] Corgan also developed a protective bond with his younger half-brother, who had special needs as a child.^[4] When Corgan's father and stepmother separated, all three children would live alone with the stepmother, with both of Corgan's birth parents living separately within an hour's drive.^[5]

Corgan, who grew much faster than his fellow students, was a strong athlete in elementary school.^[6] In addition to being a member of his Marquardt Middle School baseball team, he collected baseball cards (amassing over 10,000) and listened to every Chicago Cubs game.^[6] However, by the time he began attending Glenbard North High School in Carol Stream Illinois, he had become only an average athlete. He decided to start playing guitar when he went over to a friend's house and saw his friend's Flying V.^[6] Corgan gave his savings to his father, who bought him a used Les Paul knock-off.^[6] Corgan, Sr. steered his son stylistically, encouraging him to listen to Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix, but offered little other support, and the younger Corgan taught himself to play the instrument.^[5] His musical interests in his formative years included hard rock like Guts-era John Cale, heavy metal pioneers Black Sabbath, and mainstream rock like Queen, Boston, ELO, Rush, and Cheap Trick. In high school, Corgan discovered alternative rock through Bauhaus and The Cure.^[7]

Corgan performed in a string of bands in high school and graduated as an honor student. Despite grant and scholarship offers from a number of schools, including the University of Michigan, and a tuition fund left by his grandmother,^[8] Corgan decided to pursue music full-time.^[9] Not finding the Chicago music scene to his liking, he moved from Chicago to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1985 with his first major band, The Marked (so named for the conspicuous birthmarks of both Corgan and drummer Ron Roesing). Not finding success in St. Petersburg, the band dissolved; Corgan moved back to Chicago to live with his father.

1988–2000: The Smashing Pumpkins[link]

Upon his return to Chicago, Corgan had already devised his next project – a new wave band that would be called The Smashing Pumpkins.^[10] Corgan met guitarist James Iha while working in a record store, and the two began recording demos, which Corgan describes as "gloomy little goth-pop records."^[10] After recording their first two demos that Corgan wrote, Iha decided to write one for himself. After looking over it, Corgan criticized it. Iha took this very seriously and did not talk to Corgan for about another two months, until one day they just decided to make some more demos.^{[citation needed]} He then met bassist D'arcy Wretzky after a local show, arguing with her about a band that had just played. Soon after, the Smashing Pumpkins were formed. The trio began to play together at local clubs with only a drum machine for percussion. To secure a show at the Metro in Chicago, the band recruited drummer Jimmy Chamberlin and played for the first time as a quartet on October 5, 1988.

Billy Corgan in 1992.

The addition of the powerful Chamberlin drove the band in a heavier direction almost immediately.^[10] On the band's inaugural album, Gish (1991), the band fused diverse threads such as psychedelic rock and heavy metal into a distinctive sound. Gish fared better than expected, but the follow-up, Siamese Dream, released on Virgin Records, became a multi-platinum hit. The band became known for internal drama during this period, with Corgan frequently characterized in the music press as a "control freak" due to rumors that Corgan played all the guitar and bass parts on Gish and Siamese Dream (a rumor that Corgan later confirmed as true). Despite this, the album was well-received by critics, and the songs "Today" and "Disarm" became smash hits.

The band's 1995 follow up effort, the double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, was even more successful, spawning a string of hit singles. The album was nominated for seven Grammy awards that year and would eventually be certified nine times platinum in the United States. The song "1979" was Corgan's biggest hit to date, reaching #1 on Billboard's modern rock and mainstream rock charts. Their appearance on Saturday Night Live on November 11, 1995 to promote this material (their second appearance on the show overall) also was the television debut appearance of Corgan's shaved head, which he has maintained consistently ever since.

During the album's tour, the band was plagued by Chamberlin's heroin addiction. On July 12, 1996, Chamberlin and touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin overdosed in a hotel room. Chamberlin survived, but Melvoin did not. The Pumpkins made the decision to fire Chamberlin and would continue as a trio. This shakeup, coupled with Corgan going through a divorce and the death of his mother, influenced the somber mood of the band's next album, 1998's Adore. Featuring a darker, more subdued and heavily electronic sound at a time when alternative rock was declining in mainstream cachet, Adore divided both critics and fans, resulting in a significant decrease in album sales (it sold 1.3 million discs in the US).

Chamberlin was reunited with the band in 1999, and 2000 saw Machina/The Machines of God, a concept album on which the band deliberately played to their public image; critics were again divided, and sales were lower than ever. During the recording for Machina, Wretzky quit the band and was replaced for the upcoming tour by former Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur. In 2000, the band announced they would break up at the end of the year, and soon after released Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music for free over the internet. The Smashing Pumpkins played their last show on December 2 of that year at the Cabaret Metro.

2001–05: Zwan and solo career[link]

Following a brief stint touring with New Order in the summer, Corgan reunited with Chamberlin to form the band Zwan with Corgan's old friend Matt Sweeney in late 2001.^[11][12] The lineup was completed with guitarist David Pajo and bassist Paz Lenchantin. The band had two distinct incarnations, the primary approach being an upbeat rock band with a three-guitar-driven sound, the second, a folk and gospel inspired acoustic side with live strings.^[13] The quintet performed throughout 2002 and their debut album, Mary Star of the Sea, was released in early 2003 to generally positive reviews.^[14] In the midst of their supporting tour for the album, mounting conflict between Corgan and Chamberlin and the other band members led to the cancellation of the rest of the tour as the band entered an apparent hiatus, formally announcing a breakup in September 2003.^{[15][16][17][18]}

In 2004, Corgan began writing revealing autobiographical posts on his website and his MySpace page, blaming Iha for the breakup of the Smashing Pumpkins, calling Wretzky "a mean spirited drug addict," and criticizing his former Zwan bandmates' fixation with "indie cred" and calling them "filthy", opportunistic, and selfish.^[19][20]

In late 2004, Corgan published Blinking with Fists, a book of poetry. Despite mixed reviews, the book debuted on the New York Times Best Seller list.^[21] Around this time, he began posting autobiographical writings online under the title The Confessions of Billy Corgan.

Also in 2004, he began a solo music career, landing on an electronic/shoegaze/alternative rock sound for his first solo album, The Future Embrace, co-produced and arranged by Bon Harris of Nitzer Ebb. Released on June 21, 2005 through Reprise Records, it garnered mixed reviews from the press and only sold 69,000 copies.^[22] Corgan toured behind his solo album with a touring band that included Linda Strawberry, Brian Liesegang and Matt Walker in 2005. This tour was not as extensive as previous Smashing Pumpkins or Zwan tours.^[23] Prior to recording The Future Embrace, Corgan had recorded some 72 songs inspired by Chicago history for the largely acoustic ChicagoSongs project, which have yet to be released.^[24][25]

2005–present: The Smashing Pumpkins revival[link]

In 2005, Corgan took out a full-page ad in Chicago's two major newspapers (The Chicago Tribune and The Chicago Sun-Times) revealing his desire to reform the Smashing Pumpkins.^[24] Several days later, Jimmy Chamberlin accepted Billy Corgan's offer for a reunion.^[26]

On April 20, 2006 the band's official website confirmed that the group was indeed reuniting.^[27] The band went into studio for much of 2006 and early 2007, and performed its first show in seven years on May 22, 2007, with new members Ginger Pooley (bass) and Jeff Schroeder (guitar) replacing Wretzky and Iha. The new album, titled Zeitgeist, was released in the U.S. on July 10, 2007, and debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts. Corgan and the rest of the Pumpkins toured extensively throughout 2007 and 2008, also releasing the EP American Gothic and the singles "G.L.O.W." and "Superchrist". Chamberlin left the band in March 2009, and Corgan elected to continue under the name.^[28]

In summer 2009, Corgan formed the band Spirits in the Sky to play a tribute concert to the late Sky Saxon of the Seeds. He then toured with the band, composed of ex-Catherine member and "Superchrist" producer Kerry Brown, the late Electric Prunes bassist Mark Tulin, Strawberry Alarm Clock keyboardist Mark Weitz, frequent Corgan collaborator Linda Strawberry, flautist Kevin Dippold, "Superchrist" violinist Ysanne Spevack, new Pumpkins drummer Mike Byrne, and Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro, playing covers and new Pumpkins material at several clubs in California.^[29][30] At the end of the tour, Corgan, Byrne, Tulin, and Brown headed back to Chicago to begin work on the new Smashing Pumpkins album, Teargarden by Kaleidyscope.^[31] The current lineup, which includes new bassist Nicole Fiorentino, toured through much of 2010, then spent 2011 recording the "album-within-an-album" Oceania and mounting tours of the US and Europe.

In 2011, Corgan formed an independent wrestling promotion called Resistance Pro.^[32][33] In 2012, he plans to open a tea house in his native Highland Park.^[34] He is currently at work on his spiritual memoir, entitled "God is Everywhere from Here to There".^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Billy Corgan has struggled with depression for much of his life enduring bouts of self-injury, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and suicidal thoughts.^[35] Corgan attributes these problems to the abuse he endured as a child as well as personal anxieties and issues.^[35] While he believes he is far more stable now, Corgan still occasionally battles depression and has become an advocate for support networks.^[35]

His mother Martha died in December 1996. The song "For Martha", from Adore, was written in her memory. In the early 2000s, Corgan named his label Martha's Music after her as well. A picture of Martha as a little girl sitting on a fake moon at Riverview Park is featured on the flipside of the Siamese Dream booklet.^[36]

Corgan is an avid sports fan. A lifelong fan of the Cubs, he is an occasional commentator on that team for WXRT DJ Lin Brehmer, and sporadically in interviews.^[37] He has appeared at Cubs games many times, occasionally throwing the ceremonial first pitch or singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". He was a devoted fan of the Bulls and Blackhawks in the 1990s, and became personal friends with Dennis Rodman^[5] and Chris Chelios.^[38]

He is a lifelong fan of professional wrestling and self-described "wrestlemaniac",^[39] and appeared at an Extreme Championship Wrestling event wielding an acoustic guitar as a weapon.^[40] In 2008, the Pumpkins song "Doomsday Clock" was used by Ring of Honor for promotional videos.^[41] On April 26, 2010, Corgan appeared live on the SIRIUS Satellite Radio program Right After Wrestling with Arda Ocal to discuss his love for pro wrestling and the importance of unique theme songs for characters. On August 26, 2010, Corgan took part in a professional wrestling storyline with wrestlers from the Mexican promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, during a concert for MTV World Stage.^[42] As far as other entertainment, Corgan once commented that all he watches on TV are "sports and Three Stooges."^[43] In March 2008, he was spotted in the crowd at the final day of the cricket test match between New Zealand and England in Wellington.

He incorporates elements of Catholicism and Buddhism into his spiritual philosophy, even though he has not publicly aligned himself with any one faith.^[44] In 2009, he launched Everything From Here to There, an interfaith website that is devoted to "Mind-Body-Soul" integration. He mentions praying each morning and night to be able to see through Christ's eyes and feel with his heart.^[45] On his drive to create art and music, he said, "God is just out my back door, yet I choose not to visit. I would rather sit alone and scheme on how to be remembered, on what more that I can do here to cement the evidence that I once walked these roads with you. It is a futile exercise. I know it is, and yet I persist."^[46]

While Corgan typically avoids discussing US politics, he said after the 2008 presidential election, "I'm very proud of my country right now for doing the right thing."^[47] In 2009, he posted a transcript of a webcast by political activist Lyndon LaRouche to the official Smashing Pumpkins forum.^[48] On March 10, 2009, Billy Corgan testified in front of Congress on behalf of the musicFIRST Coalition. Corgan spoke in favor of H.R. 848, the Performance Rights Act, which gives musicians and artists their share of compensation when their music is played on music radio stations.^[49]

In 1993, he married his longtime on-again, off-again girlfriend, museum book restorer and artist Chris Fabian. They were married at a small ceremony at his house in Wrigleyville.^[50] Rumors circulated that Corgan and Courtney Love rekindled their romance during the Pumpkins' 1994 Lollapalooza tour, after Kurt Cobain's death.^[51] Corgan and Fabian separated sometime during the summer of 1996, and divorced in 1997. Corgan refused to discuss the subject in interviews, saying "There is not and will not be any public record on my marriage – that's one thing I have to draw lines around."^[52] He nevertheless described the circumstances of his marriage in his online Confessions, in 2005.^[50]

In late 1995,^[5] he started dating photographer Yelena Yemchuk, who had contributed to several Smashing Pumpkins videos and album art. He continued to date Yemchuk until around 2004. According to Corgan, his breakup with her contributed to the themes of his 2005 solo release, The Future Embrace.^[53] In 2008, Corgan said, "I've had a bad marriage and seven bad girlfriends in a row", a perspective he attributes to his dedication to music.^[54]

In early 2006, Corgan moved in with Love and her daughter, Frances Bean Cobain. According to Love, he had his own wing in her new Hollywood Hills mansion.^[55] Two years later, Love criticized Corgan publicly over the latter's alleged refusal to attend Frances' sweet 16 birthday party.^[56] In March 2010, Corgan stated in an interview in reference about Love "I have no interest in supporting her in any way, shape or form. You can't throw enough things down the abyss with a person like that" and said he parted ways with her. Shortly after, when Hole's Nobody's Daughter was released, Corgan unleashed on his Twitter a set of anger-filled tweets against her in reference to including two songs he wrote, "Samantha" and "How Dirty Girls Get Clean", that ended up on the new album without his permission. Love then wrote an apology to him on her Facebook, but things heated up. Corgan took to Twitter again in six tweets, attacking her again. Love responded to Corgan's tweets, saying "All i am is nice about you so if you wanna be mean be mean i dont feel anything. i have too much to feel dear."^[57]

Since April 2010, he has been dating Jessica Origliasso from The Veronicas.^[58]

Collaborations[link]

Corgan has collaborated with several acts since reforming The Smashing Pumpkins; he is pictured here performing with the late Mark Tulin of The Electric Prunes at a benefit concert for Sky Saxon.

In addition to performing, Corgan has produced albums for Ric Ocasek, The Frogs, and Catherine. He shared songwriting credit on several songs on Hole's 1998 album Celebrity Skin; the title track became Corgan's second #1 modern rock hit. He also acted as a consultant for Marilyn Manson during the album Mechanical Animals. He has produced three soundtracks for the movies Ransom (1996), Stigmata (1999) and Spun (2002) in which he appeared as a doctor.^[59] Billy appeared at the 1996 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremonies. He inducted one of his biggest musical influences, Pink Floyd. He played acoustic guitar during the ceremony with Pink Floyd, when they performed their song "Wish You Were Here". He has collaborated with Tony Iommi, Blindside, David Bowie, New Order and Marianne Faithfull. Corgan would also guide and collaborate with three bands in the 2000s—Breaking Benjamin (during sessions for 2004's We Are Not Alone), Taproot (for Blue-Sky Research, 2005), and Sky Saxon.^[60] Corgan appeared as a guest vocalist on the song "Loki Cat" on Jimmy Chamberlin's first solo album Life Begins Again and Chamberlin played drums for the song "DIA" on Corgan's solo debut, where Robert Smith from The Cure teamed up with Billy Corgan to do a cover of the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody". Corgan has worked on Courtney Love's Nobody's Daughter,^[61] Garbage vocalist Shirley Manson's debut solo album,^[62] and Scorpions' Humanity - Hour 1.^[63] In 2010, Corgan featured on Ray Davies' album on a mash-up of the tracks "All Day and All of the Night" and "Destroyer".

Musical style and influences[link]

Corgan performing during the Mellon Collie tour.

When asked in a 1994 Rolling Stone interview about his influences, Corgan replied:

Eight years old, I put on the Black Sabbath record, and my life is forever changed. It sounded so heavy. It rattled the bones. I wanted that feeling. With Bauhaus and The Cure, it was the ability to create a mood and an atmosphere. The air gets heavier. With Jimi Hendrix it was the ability to translate this other level of guitar. Cheap Trick – it was a vocal influence. Although Tom Petersson once told me that Rick Nielsen called us 'tuneless and nonmelodic.'^[64]

Although Corgan is not widely recognized for his guitar playing, it has been praised numerous times. Allmusic said "Starla" "proves that Corgan was one of the finest (and most underrated) rock guitarists of the '90s",^[65] while Rolling Stone called him and his Smashing Pumpkins bandmates "ruthless virtuosos". Within guitar circles, he has assumed a position of respect. He wrote six articles for Guitar World in 1995, and his solos for "Cherub Rock" and "Geek USA" were included on their list of the top guitar solos of all time. His solo for "Soma" was #24 on Rolling Stone's list of the top guitar solos.^[66] He is a fan of Eddie Van Halen and interviewed him in the late nineties for Guitar World. Other guitarists Corgan rates highly include Tony Iommi, Ritchie Blackmore, Leslie West, and Robin Trower.^[67]

His bass playing, which has featured on nearly every Smashing Pumpkins album, was influenced by post-punk figures like Peter Hook and Simon Gallup.^[68]

Corgan has praised Radiohead, saying "if they're not the best band in the world, then they're one of the best", and is also a fan of Pantera.^[69]Other favorites include Rush, Pink Floyd, Metallica, Queen, Dinosaur Jr., My Bloody Valentine,^[70] and Spiritualized.^[43]