Philosophy of Biology.
This major new series in the philosophy of science aims to provide a new generation of textbooks for the subject. The series will not only offer fresh treatments of core topics in the theory and methodology of scientific knowledge, but also introductions to newer areas of the discipline. Furthermore...
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| Online Access: |
Full Text (via ProQuest) |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Hoboken :
Taylor and Francis,
2014.
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| Series: | Philosophy and science Philosophy of biology.
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| Subjects: |
Table of Contents:
- Cover; Half Title; Title; Copyright; Contents; Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. The argument in Darwin's Origin; 1.1 Earlier attempts; 1.2 Variation and inheritance; 1.3 The struggle for existence; 1.4 Natural selection; 2. The power of genes; 2.1 Introducing the gene; 2.2 Genes and how organisms are made; 2.3 Genes as agents; 3. Units of selection; 3.1 Genes versus individual organisms; 3.2 Individual organisms as units of selection; 3.3 Groups of organisms, and the question of altruism; 3.4 Memes; 4. Panglossianism and its discontents; 4.1 The uniqueness of natural selection.
- 4.2 The accusation of ""panglossianism""4.3 So what is wrong with panglossianism?; 4.4 A storm in a teacup?; 5. The role of development; 5.1 A nineteenth-century idea: recapitulation; 5.2 New developments in developmental biology; 5.3 Evo-devo; 5.4 Developmental systems theory; 6. Nature and nurture; 6.1 Why does innateness seem to matter so much?; 6.2 But what is innateness?; 6.3 The ordinary-language concept; 6.4 Canalization; 6.5 Generative entrenchment; 6.6 A deflationary approach; 6.7 Conclusion; 7. Function: ""what it is for"" versus ""what it does""; 7.1 What it is for.
- 7.2 What it has been selected for7.3 What it does; 7.4 Conclusion; 8. Biological categories; 8.1 Introduction: natural kinds in general; 8.2 Taxonomy; 8.3 What are the natural kinds of biology?; 9. Species and their special problems; 9.1 The interbreeding criterion; 9.2 Species as individuals; 9.3 A pluralistic approach; 10. Biology and philosophy of science; 10.1 Lawlessness in biology; 10.2 Does biology have real laws?; 10.3 Comprehensiveness, unity and simplicity; 10.4 Conclusion; 11. Evolution and epistemology; 11.1 Conjectures and refutations; 11.2 The reliability of our sources.
- 11.3 The limitations of our minds12. Evolution and religion; 12.1 Does the theory of evolution support atheism?; 12.2 ""God of the gaps"" arguments; 12.3 Evolution and explaining religion; 13. Evolution and human nature; 13.1 Sociobiology and its controversies; 13.2 Evolutionary psychology's grand synthesis; 13.3 Conclusion; 14. Biology and ethics; 14.1 Fitness as a normative concept; 14.2 The naturalistic fallacy; 14.3 Ought implies can; 14.4 Altruism; 14.5 Intuitions again; Notes; Further reading; Bibliography; Index.