Elsevier S & T

Philosophy of Biology

Gabbay, Dov M.

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Table of contents
  • Front CoverCover
  • Philosophy of Biologyiii
  • Copyright Pageiv
  • Table of Contentsvii
  • General Prefacev
  • Prefacexi
  • List of Contributorsxv
  • Part I Biographyxix
  • Charles Darwin1
  • Darwin the Geologist2
  • Darwin Becomes an Evolutionist5
  • Natural Selection8
  • The Origin of SpeciesŽ11
  • The Consilience16
  • After the OriginŽ19
  • Philosophical Issues22
  • The Darwinian Revolution28
  • Bibliography33
  • Sir Ronald Aylmer Fisher37
  • 1 Early Life and Education37
  • 2 At Rothamsted: A Period of Intense Activity38
  • 3 At University College, London46
  • 4 At Life’s Close47
  • Bibliography47
  • Haldane and the Emergence of Modern Evolutionary Theory49
  • 1 Introduction49
  • 2 Historical Background50
  • 3 Haldanes Mathematical TheoryŽ55
  • 4 The Causes of Evolution64
  • 5 The Aftermath69
  • 6 Historical Reconstructions71
  • Acknowledgments82
  • Bibliography82
  • Sewall Wright87
  • 1 A Biography in Brief87
  • 2 Inbreeding88
  • 3 Statistics and Path Analysis90
  • 4 Physiological Genetics91
  • 5 Population Genetics92
  • 6 The Shifting Balance Theory94
  • 7 Philosophy96
  • 8 Wright, The Man97
  • Bibliography98
  • Motoo Kimura101
  • 1 A Brief Biography101
  • 2 Population Genetics Theory104
  • 3 The Neutral Theory105
  • 4 Kimura The Man106
  • Bibliography107
  • Part II Evolution109
  • Natural Selection111
  • Fitness112
  • What Does Natural Selection Explain?114
  • Adaptationism116
  • Forces and Causes123
  • Bibliography125
  • Neutralism129
  • 1 The Neutral Theory: Some Historical Background129
  • 2 Reception of the Theory132
  • 3 Kimura’s Arguments for Neutral Evolution133
  • 4 Tests of the Neutral Theory134
  • 5 Neutralism & Adaptive Evolution: The Molecular and the Phenotypic Level135
  • 6 What is Drift in the Context of the Neutral Theory?138
  • Bibliography139
  • Levels of Selection141
  • 1 Introduction141
  • 2 From Organisms to Genes and Groups141
  • 3 Genes and Organisms: Replicators, Interactors, and Other UnitsŽ143
  • 4 Group Selection and Individual Selection145
  • 5 The Problem of Altruism and the Levels of Selection147
  • 6 Pluralism and Realism150
  • 7 Groups as Contexts, Groups as Superorganisms153
  • 8 Transitions in Evolutionary History155
  • Bibliography157
  • What is Evolvability?163
  • 1 The Metazoa and the Volvocaceans: Two Contrasting Fates163
  • 2 Limits on Volvocacean Disparity164
  • 3 Fitness: A Model for Evolvability?166
  • 4 Evolvability, Individuals and Environments169
  • Bibliography177
  • Development: Three Grades of Ontogenetic Involvement179
  • 1 Introduction179
  • 2 The Fragmentation of Evolution180
  • 3 Sub-Organismal Biology183
  • 4 Three Grades of Ontogenetic Involvement185
  • 5 Conclusion: Going Through the Grades196
  • Bibliography197
  • Evolution and Normativity201
  • 1 General Introduction201
  • 2 The Shadow of Darwin203
  • 3 Final Thoughts214
  • Bibliography215
  • Evolutionary Ethics219
  • 1 Introduction219
  • 2 Background Assumptions223
  • 3 The Evolution of Altruism225
  • 4 Reproductive Strategies and the Two Norms Theory227
  • 5 Reproductive Strategies and Sex Roles230
  • 6 Morality and the Marital Compromise233
  • 7 Enhancement Norms and Control Norms235
  • 8 The Open Question Argument237
  • Bibliography244
  • Part III Genetics247
  • Genetic Analysis249
  • 1 Introduction249
  • 2 From Factors to Genes: Mendel to Johannsen251
  • 3 The Chromosomal Theory of Heredity258
  • 4 Genetic Linkage as an Analytic Strategy264
  • 5 Genes „ The Atoms of Heredity: From Muller to Watson and Crick270
  • 6 From Genotypes to Phenotypes to Stereotypes281
  • 7 Population Genetics Upholds Darwinism288
  • 8 Opening Pandora’s Box: Cracks in the Dogma290
  • 9 Conclusion295
  • Bibliography297
  • The Development of Population Genetics309
  • 1 Early Days: The Law of Ancestral Heredity311
  • 2 Statistical Darwinism Vs. Mendelian Factors315
  • 3 From Statistical Biology to Mathematical Populations319
  • 4 Genes and Selection: The Synthesis Established325
  • 5 Debating the Details329
  • Bibliography332
  • Maximisation Principles in Evolutionary Biology335
  • 1 Introduction335
  • 2 Extremum Principles in Physics335
  • 3 Evolution as Fitness-Maximisation. (1) Fisher’s ‘Fundamental Theorem’336
  • 4 Evolution as Fitness-Maximisation. (2) Misinterpreting the Fundamental Theorem339
  • 5 Evolution as Fitness-Maximisation. (3) What Remains To Be Said341
  • 6 Evolution as Entropy Maximisation342
  • 7 Reconstructing Evolution: The Principle of Parsimony and Ockham’s Razor343
  • 8 Reconstructing Evolution: The Method of Minimum Evolution345
  • Bibliography346
  • Reductionism in Biology349
  • 1 Post-Positivist Intertheoretical Reduction349
  • 2 Intertheoretical Antireductionism353
  • 3 Historical Reductionism358
  • 4 Completing Why-Necessary Explanations in Evolutionary Biology363
  • Bibliography368
  • Traits, Genes, and Coding369
  • 1 The Uniqueness of Genes369
  • 2 Cause For Concern372
  • 3 False Starts and Dead Ends378
  • 4 A Better Idea386
  • 5 A Bullet to Bite391
  • 6 The Reach of the Code395
  • Acknowledgements397
  • Bibliography397
  • Part IV Taxonomy401
  • Species, Taxonomy, and Systematics403
  • 1 Introduction403
  • 2 Species404
  • 3 Taxonomic Pluralism411
  • 4 The Linnaean Hierarchy416
  • Bibliography425
  • Homology and Homoplasy429
  • 1 Introduction429
  • 2 Similarity430
  • 3 Hierarchy and Embryonic Development431
  • 4 Reconceptualizing Homology and Homoplasy431
  • 5 Homology and Analogy Delineated432
  • 6 Homoplasy435
  • 7 Homogeny and Homoplasy435
  • 8 Convergence437
  • 9 Parallelism438
  • 10 Reversals439
  • 11 Rudiments and Vestiges440
  • 12 Atavisms441
  • 13 The Continuum441
  • Acknowledgements442
  • Bibliography445
  • Biological Conceptions of Race455
  • 1 Introduction455
  • 2 The Typological Race Concept456
  • 3 The Geographical Race Concept460
  • 4 Global Arguments against Human Biological Races463
  • 5 Ecological and Phylogenetic Conceptions of Race468
  • 6 Conclusion477
  • Bibliography478
  • Part V Special Topics483
  • Formalisations of Evolutionary Biology485
  • Introduction485
  • 1 The Path to a Galilean Conception of Scientific Theories486
  • 2 The Complex Structure of Evolutionary Theory503
  • 3 The Formalisation of Some Component Theories which Comprise Contemporary Evolutionary Theory505
  • 4 Revisiting Models and Theories519
  • Bibliography520
  • Functions525
  • 1 The Problem of Biological Functions525
  • 2 Organisms, Artefacts, and Agents526
  • 3 The Selected Effects Account530
  • 4 Problems with the Selected Effects Account534
  • 5 Malfunction536
  • 6 Goal-Directedness539
  • 7 Kantian Projectivism544
  • 8 Naturalism545
  • Acknowledgements546
  • Bibliography546
  • Biological Approaches to Mental Representation549
  • 1 The Problem of Intentionality549
  • 2 Functional and Semantic Norms550
  • 3 The Great Divide553
  • 4 Bridging the Divide: Neuroscience556
  • 5 Some Problems For Teleosemantics559
  • Bibliography564
  • Innateness567
  • Innateness as Growth568
  • Chomsky’s Poverty of Stimulus573
  • Canalization and the Epigenetic Landscape575
  • Acknowledgements583
  • Bibliography583
  • Artificial Life585
  • 1 History and Methodology585
  • 2 Three Illustrations of Contemporary Artificial Life588
  • 3 Philosophical Implications of Artificial Life592
  • 4 Conclusions600
  • Bibliography601
  • Index605
Book details
  • Vendor Elsevier S & T
  • SKU 9780444515438
  • ISBN-13 9780080471242
  • Author Gabbay, Dov M.
  • Category Science
  • Subject Ecology

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Philosophy of Biology is a rapidly expanding field. It is concerned with explanatory concepts in evolution, genetics, and ecology. This collection of 25 essays by leading researchers provides an overview of the state of the field. These essays are wholly new; none of them could have been written even ten years ago. They demonstrate how philosophical analysis has been able to contribute to sometimes contested areas of scientific theory making.

-Written by internationally acknowledged leaders in the field
- Entries make original contributions as well as summarizing state of the art discoveries in the field
- Easy to read and understand