Species Problems and Beyond: Contemporary Issues in Philosophy and Practice

ISBN-13: 9781032221472 / Angielski / Miękka / 2022 / 392 str.

Wilkins, John S.

Opis

This book presents opposing views on the current philosophical and conceptual issues of the Species Problem in biology. Topics include ontology of species, definitions of species category and units, species rank, speciation issues, nomenclature, ecology, and species conservation.

Recenzje

Species Problems and Beyond offers a collection of up-to-date essays discussing from an interdisciplinary perspective the many ramifications of the 'Species Problem.' The authors represent experts in the philosophy of biology, in species-level evolutionary investigations, and in biodiversity studies and conservation. Some of the topics addressed concern the context sensitivity of the term 'species'; species as individuals, processes, natural kinds, or as 'operative concepts'; species delimitation in the age of Big (genomic) Data; and taxonomic inflation and its consequences for conservation strategies. The carefully edited volume will be an invaluable resource for philosophers of biology and evolutionary biologists alike.

-- Olivier Rieppel, Rowe Family Curator of Evolutionary Biology, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum, USA

 

The idea of species, and the things in nature we call species, are foundational concepts in ecology and evolutionary biology, and central to our understanding of the natural world and how it is organized. This book brings philosophers and biologists together to drill down on the nature of species. It demonstrates that the problem of species, and its role in biological theory and practice, is more complex than most biologists realize, and it also highlights the spectrum of insights, and differences, that philosophers bring to this problem. It articulates new perspectives for both disciplines.

-- Joel Cracraft, Lamont Curator and Curator-in-Charge, Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History, USA

 

Just when we thought there was noting more to say about 'the species problem,' this volume presents us with new approaches and reopens old debates in fruitful ways. By broadening the context to 'species problems and beyond,' the diverse contributions in this edited collection allows philosophers to reconsider classic debates and concepts in this domain but also provides perspectives on parallel debates within biological practices as well as critical historical reflections. This may be the volume that helps even those of us who tend to (productively) dislike these debates to grapple anew with species problems.

-- Rachel A. Ankeny, Professor, School of Humanities, The University of Adelaide, Australia

 

What is the species problem? Is it one problem, or several? Has it been solved, or, are we just getting started? If these questions are of interest to you, this is a fantastic place to start. The volume is composed of essays by scholars at the leading edge of their field. The authors are - by and large - philosophers of science, but it is a book that should be of interest to both philosophers and biologists. The "species problem" as it's become known, is actually several problems, and the editors and authors deftly parse these problems, setting out competing solutions, and offering novel perspectives, and considering wider implications, such as concerning conservation. I highly recommend the volume to faculty, graduate students, and scholars with interests in species, conservation, metaphysics, and conceptual change in science, more generally.

-- Anya Plutynski, Washington University in St. Louis, US

Spis treści

Section 1. Concepts and theories 1. We Are Nearly Ready to Begin the Species Problem　2. Is the Species Problem　That　Important?　3. ‘Species’ as a technical term: Multiple meanings in practice, one idea in theory　4. What　Should　Species Be? Taxonomic Inflation and the Ethics of Splitting and Lumping　5. The Good Species　Section 2. Practice and methods 6. Species in the Time of Big Data: The Multi-species Coalescent, the General Lineage Concept, and Species Delimitation　7.　Species delimitation using molecular data　8. Taxonomic order, disorder and governance　Section 3. Ranks and trees and names 9. Ecology, evolution, and systematics in a post-species world　10. The species before and after Linnaeus – tension between disciplinary nomadism and conservative nomenclature　11. Taxonomic hierarchies as a tool for coping with the complexity of biodiversity　Section 4. Metaphysics and epistemologies 12. The species problem from a conceptualist’s viewpoint　13. (Some) Species are Processes　14. Metaphysical presuppositions about species stability: problematic and unavoidable　15. Critique of taxonomic reason(ing): nature’s joints in light of an ‘Honest’ Species Concept and Kurt Hubner’s　historistic　philosophy of science　Afterword 16. Continuing After Species: An Afterword