The department attracted students and faculty from continental Europe, Britain, and the United States, including Noam Chomsky, the visiting Beckman Professor in 1966, whose transformational linguistics Boyd found deeply appealing in its philosophical implications.
The department attracted a diverse group of scholars from across the continent, Britain, and the US, including Noam Chomsky, who visited as the Beckman Professor in 1966. Boyd was deeply influenced by Chomsky's transformational linguistics, which had significant philosophical implications.