He first went to school in Ostend, where he studied mainly mathematics, chemistry, and physics, but where he also read widely in Latin, Greek, Dutch, and English Literature.

After attending the University of Detroit, he returned to Louvain and earned a doctorate summa cum laude with a dissertation on Sir Arthur Eddington's philosophy of science.

[3] In 1934, De Koninck began work at the Université Laval in Quebec, where he became a full professor the following year, a position which he held for the rest of his life.

[9] De Koninck's graduate career at Louvain led him to write a dissertation under Fernand Renoirte, himself a philosopher of science, on the philosophy of Sir Arthur Eddington.

The epilogue to the book, "Reckoning with the Computers," extends the theme of the hollow universe from the realm of mathematics, physics, and biology to the account of man himself.

Yves Simon agreed with De Koninck's rejection of the subordination of the common good to the person but denied that it applied to Maritain.