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Author: David L. Hull
Publisher: Prentice Hall
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 166
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Book Description
Author: David L. Hull
Publisher: Prentice Hall
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 166
Get Book Here
Book Description
Author: Peter Godfrey-Smith
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691174679
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200
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Book Description
An essential introduction to the philosophy of biology This is a concise, comprehensive, and accessible introduction to the philosophy of biology written by a leading authority on the subject. Geared to philosophers, biologists, and students of both, the book provides sophisticated and innovative coverage of the central topics and many of the latest developments in the field. Emphasizing connections between biological theories and other areas of philosophy, and carefully explaining both philosophical and biological terms, Peter Godfrey-Smith discusses the relation between philosophy and science; examines the role of laws, mechanistic explanation, and idealized models in biological theories; describes evolution by natural selection; and assesses attempts to extend Darwin's mechanism to explain changes in ideas, culture, and other phenomena. Further topics include functions and teleology, individuality and organisms, species, the tree of life, and human nature. The book closes with detailed, cutting-edge treatments of the evolution of cooperation, of information in biology, and of the role of communication in living systems at all scales. Authoritative and up-to-date, this is an essential guide for anyone interested in the important philosophical issues raised by the biological sciences.
Author: Kostas Kampourakis
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108491839
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 341
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Book Description
A short and accessible introduction to philosophy of science for students and researchers across the life sciences.
Author: David L. Hull
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521644051
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 284
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Book Description
One way to understand science is as a selection process. David Hull, one of the dominant figures in contemporary philosophy of science, sets out in this 2001 volume a general analysis of this selection process that applies equally to biological evolution, the reaction of the immune system to antigens, operant learning, and social and conceptual change in science. Hull aims to distinguish between those characteristics that are contingent features of selection and those that are essential. Science and Selection brings together many of David Hull's most important essays on selection (some never before published) in one accessible volume.
Author: Francisco J. Ayala
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 9781444314939
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 440
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Book Description
This collection of specially commissioned essays puts top scholarshead to head to debate the central issues in the lively and fastgrowing field of philosophy of biology Brings together original essays on ten of the most hotlydebated questions in philosophy of biology Lively head-to-head debate format sharply defines the issuesand paves the way for further discussion Includes coverage of the new and vital area of evolutionarydevelopmental biology, as well as the concept of a unified species,the role of genes in selection, the differences between micro- andmacro-evolution, and much more Each section features an introduction to the topic as well assuggestions for further reading Offers an accessible overview of this fast-growing and dynamicfield, whilst also capturing the imagination of professionalphilosophers and biologists
Author: Ernst Mayr
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674896666
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 582
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Book Description
A collection of twenty-eight essays, five previously unpublished, grouped into nine categories: Philosophy, Natural Selection, Adaptation, Darwin, Diversity, Species, Speciation, Macroevolution, and Historical Perspective. The book, Ernst Mayr notes in the Foreword, is an attempt "to strengthen the bridge between biology and philosophy, and point to the new direction in which a new philosophy of biology will move."
Author: Alexander Rosenberg
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521275613
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300
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Book Description
Preface p. ix Chapter 1 Biology and Its Philosophy p. 2 1.1 The Rise of Logical Positivism p. 2 1.2 The Consequences for Philosophy p. 4 1.3 Problems of Falsifiability p. 6 1.4 Philosophy of Science Without Positivism p. 8 1.5 Speculation and Science p. 10 Introduction to the Literature p. 11 Chapter 2 Autonomy and Provincialism p. 13 2.1 Philosophical Agendas versus Biological Agendas p. 13 2.2 Motives for Provincialism and Autonomy p. 18 2.3 Biological Philosophies p. 21 2.4 Tertium Datur? p. 25 2.5 The Issues in Dispute p. 30 2.6 Steps in the Argument p. 34 Introduction to the Literature p. 35 Chapter 3 Teleology and the Roots of Autonomy p. 37 3.1 Functional Explanations in Molecular Biology p. 39 3.2 The Search for Functions p. 43 3.3 Functional Laws p. 47 3.4 Directively Organized Systems p. 52 3.5 The Autonomy of Teleological Laws p. 59 3.6 The Metaphysics and Epistemology of Functional Explanation p. 62 3.7 Functional Explanation Will Always Be with Us p. 65 Introduction to the Literature p. 67 Chapter 4 Reductionism and the Temptation of Provincialism p. 69 4.1 Motives for Reductionism p. 69 4.2 A Triumph of Reductionism p. 73 4.3 Reductionism and Recombinant DNA p. 84 4.4 Antireductionism and Molecular Genetics p. 88 4.5 Mendel's Genes and Benzer's Cistrons p. 93 4.6 Reduction Obstructed p. 97 4.7 Qualifying Reductionism p. 106 4.8 The Supervenience of Mendelian Genetics p. 11 4.9 Levels of Organization p. 117 Introduction to the Literature p. 119 Chapter 5 The Structure of Evolutionary Theory p. 121 5.1 Is There an Evolutionary Theory? p. 122 5.2 The Charge of Tautology p. 126 5.3 Population Genetics and Evolution p. 130 5.4 Williams's Axiomatization of Evolutionary Theory p. 136 5.5 Adequacy of the Axiomatization p. 144 Introduction to the Literature p. 152 Chapter 6 Fitness p. 154 6.1 Fitness Is Measured by Its Effects p. 154 6.2 Fitness As a Statistical Propensity p. 160 6.3 The Supervenience of Fitness p. 164 6.4 The Evidence for Evolution p. 169 6.5 The Scientific Context of Evolutionary Theory p. 174 Introduction to the Literature p. 179 Chapter 7 Species p. 180 7.1 Operationalism and Theory in Taxonomy p. 182 7.2 Essentialism--For and Against p. 187 7.3 The Biological Species Notion p. 191 7.4 Evolutionary and Ecological Species p. 197 7.5 Species Are Not Natural Kinds p. 201 7.6 Species As Individuals p. 204 7.7 The Theoretical Hierarchy of Biology p. 212 7.8 The Statistical Character of Evolutionary Theory p. 216 7.9 Universal Theories and Case Studies p. 219 Introduction to the Literature p. 225 Chapter 8 New Problems of Functionalism p. 226 8.1 Functionalism in Molecular Biology p. 228 8.2 The Panglossian Paradigm p. 235 8.3 Aptations, Exaptations, and Adaptations p. 243 8.4 Information and Action Among the Macromolecules p. 246 8.5 Metaphors and Molecules p. 255 Bibliography p. 266 Index p. 273.
Author: Gereon Wolters
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press
ISBN: 0822967006
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 434
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Book Description
Leading biologists and philosophers of biology discuss the basic theories and concepts of biology and their connections with ethics, economics, and psychology, providing a remarkably unified report on the "state of the art" in the philosophy of biology.
Author: Sara Green
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319470000
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 274
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Book Description
The emergence of systems biology raises many fascinating questions: What does it mean to take a systems approach to problems in biology? To what extent is the use of mathematical and computational modelling changing the life sciences? How does the availability of big data influence research practices? What are the major challenges for biomedical research in the years to come? This book addresses such questions of relevance not only to philosophers and biologists but also to readers interested in the broader implications of systems biology for science and society. The book features reflections and original work by experts from across the disciplines including systems biologists, philosophers, and interdisciplinary scholars investigating the social and educational aspects of systems biology. In response to the same set of questions, the experts develop and defend their personal perspectives on the distinctive character of systems biology and the challenges that lie ahead. Readers are invited to engage with different views on the questions addressed, and may explore numerous themes relating to the philosophy of systems biology. This edited work will appeal to scholars and all levels, from undergraduates to researchers, and to those interested in a variety of scholarly approaches such as systems biology, mathematical and computational modelling, cell and molecular biology, genomics, systems theory, and of course, philosophy of biology.
Author: Alvaro Moreno
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9401798370
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 249
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Book Description
Since Darwin, Biology has been framed on the idea of evolution by natural selection, which has profoundly influenced the scientific and philosophical comprehension of biological phenomena and of our place in Nature. This book argues that contemporary biology should progress towards and revolve around an even more fundamental idea, that of autonomy. Biological autonomy describes living organisms as organised systems, which are able to self-produce and self-maintain as integrated entities, to establish their own goals and norms, and to promote the conditions of their existence through their interactions with the environment. Topics covered in this book include organisation and biological emergence, organisms, agency, levels of autonomy, cognition, and a look at the historical dimension of autonomy. The current development of scientific investigations on autonomous organisation calls for a theoretical and philosophical analysis. This can contribute to the elaboration of an original understanding of life - including human life - on Earth, opening new perspectives and enabling fecund interactions with other existing theories and approaches. This book takes up the challenge.
