Mary B. Hesse (born 1924) was an English philosopher who specialized in the philosophical interpretation of the logic, methods, and foundational assumptions of natural and social science. She was a member of the British Academy and was elected president of the Philosophy of Science Association in 1979.

Mary Hesse was born on October 15, 1924, in Reigate, England. Her father was Ethelbert Hesse and her mother was Brenda (Pelling) Hesse. She was educated at the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, and received her Ph.D. from this institution in 1948. She also earned a M.SC. from University College, London, in 1949.

Her university career began when she accepted a position as lecturer in mathematics in 1951 at the University of Leeds in England. From 1955 until 1959 she taught at the University of London as a lecturer in the history and philosophy of science. In 1960 she began her long and distinguished association with Cambridge...