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Julian Huxley: Biologist and Statesman of ScienceJournal of the History of Biology 27 (2): 363-366. 1994.
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94The Poverty of Pluralism: A Reply to Sterelny and KitcherJournal of Philosophy 87 (3): 151-158. 1990.
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178Causes That Make a DifferenceJournal of Philosophy 104 (11): 551-579. 2007.Biologists studying complex causal systems typically identify some factors as causes and treat other factors as background conditions. For example, when geneticists explain biological phenomena, they often foreground genes and relegate the cellular milieu to the background. But factors in the milieu are as causally necessary as genes for the production of phenotypic traits, even traits at the molecular level such as amino acid sequences. Gene-centered biology has been criticized on the grounds t…Read more
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131Watson and Crick’s discovery of the structure of DNA led to developments that transformed many biological sciences. But what were the relevant developments and how did they transform biology? Much of the philosophical discussion concerning this question can be organized around two opposing views: theoretical reductionism and layer-cake antireductionism. Theoretical reductionist and their anti-reductionist foes hold two assumptions in common. First, both hold that biological knowledge is structur…Read more
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69Why the antireductionist consensus won't survive the case of classical Mendelian geneticsPhilosophy of Science Association 1 125-39. 1990.Philosophers now treat the relationship between classical genetics and molecular biology as a paradigm of nonreduction and this example is playing an increasingly prominent role in debates about the reducibility of theories in other sciences. This paper shows that the anti-reductionist consensus about genetics will not withstand serious scrutiny. In addition to defusing the main anti-reductionist objections, this critical analysis uncovers tell-tale signs of a significant reduction in progress. …Read more
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112Traditional approaches in philosophy of biology focus attention on biological concepts, explanations, and theories, on evidential support and inter-theoretical relations. Newer approaches shift attention from concepts to conceptual practices, from theories to practices of theorizing, and from theoretical reduction to reductive retooling. In this article, I describe the shift from theory-focused to practice-centered philosophy of science and explain how it is leading philosophers to abandon funda…Read more
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Areas of Interest
Metaphysics |
Philosophy of Biology |
General Philosophy of Science |