Understanding Purpose is an exploration of the central concept of natural purpose (Naturzweck) in Kant's philosophy of biology. Kant's work in this area is marked by a strong teleological concern: living organisms, in his view, are qualitatively different from mechanistic devices, and as a result they cannot be understood by means of the same principles. At the same time, Kant's own use of the concept of purpose does not presuppose any theological commitments, and is merely -regulative-; that is, it is employed as a heuristic device. The contributors to this volume also investigate the...
Understanding Purpose is an exploration of the central concept of natural purpose (Naturzweck) in Kant's philosophy of biology. Kant's work in this ar...
This volume handles in various perspectives the concept of function and the nature of functional explanations, topics much discussed since two major and conflicting accounts have been raised by Larry Wright and Robert Cummins' papers in the 1970s. Here, both Wright's 'etiological theory of functions' and Cummins' 'systemic' conception of functions are refined and elaborated in the light of current scientific practice, with papers showing how the 'etiological' theory faces several objections and may in reply be revisited, while its counterpart became ever more sophisticated, as researchers...
This volume handles in various perspectives the concept of function and the nature of functional explanations, topics much discussed since two majo...
This anthology of essays presents a sample of studies from recent philosophy of medicine addressing issues which attempt to answer very general (interdependent) questions: (a) what is a disease and what is health? (b) How do we (causally) explain diseases? (c) And how do we distinguish diseases, i.e. define classes of diseases and recognize that an instance X of disease belongs to a given class B? (d) How do we assess and choose cure/ therapy?
The book is divided into three sections: classification, disease and evidence. In general, attention is focused on statistics in medicine and...
This anthology of essays presents a sample of studies from recent philosophy of medicine addressing issues which attempt to answer very general (in...
The Darwinian theory of evolution is itself evolving and this book presents the details of the core of modern Darwinism and its latest developmental directions. The authors present current scientific work addressing theoretical problems and challenges in four sections, beginning with the concepts of evolution theory, its processes of variation, heredity, selection, adaptation and function, and its patterns of character, species, descent and life.
The second part of this book scrutinizes Darwinism in the philosophy of science and its usefulness in understanding ecosystems, whilst the...
The Darwinian theory of evolution is itself evolving and this book presents the details of the core of modern Darwinism and its latest developmenta...
This anthology of essays presents a sample of studies from recent philosophy of medicine addressing issues which attempt to answer very general (interdependent) questions: (a) what is a disease and what is health? (b) How do we (causally) explain diseases? (c) And how do we distinguish diseases, i.e. define classes of diseases and recognize that an instance X of disease belongs to a given class B? (d) How do we assess and choose cure/ therapy?
The book is divided into three sections: classification, disease and evidence. In general, attention is focused on statistics in medicine and...
This anthology of essays presents a sample of studies from recent philosophy of medicine addressing issues which attempt to answer very general (in...
The Darwinian theory of evolution is itself evolving and this book presents the details of the core of modern Darwinism and its latest developmental directions. The authors present current scientific work addressing theoretical problems and challenges in four sections, beginning with the concepts of evolution theory, its processes of variation, heredity, selection, adaptation and function, and its patterns of character, species, descent and life.
The second part of this book scrutinizes Darwinism in the philosophy of science and its usefulness in understanding ecosystems, whilst the...
The Darwinian theory of evolution is itself evolving and this book presents the details of the core of modern Darwinism and its latest developmenta...
This volume of original essays surveys recent challenges to the Modern Synthesis theory of evolution that arise from empirical advances in the understanding of evolution since the advent of the 21st century. It presents a spectrum of views by philosophers and biologists on the status and prospects of the Modern Synthesis.
This volume of original essays surveys recent challenges to the Modern Synthesis theory of evolution that arise from empirical advances in the underst...
This volume addresses the question of time from the perspective of the time of nature. Its aim is to provide some insights about the nature of time on the basis of the different uses of the concept of time in natural sciences. Presenting a dialogue between philosophy and science, it features a collection of papers that investigate the representation, modeling and understanding of time as they appear in physics, biology, geology and paleontology. It asks questions such as: whether or not the notions of time in the various sciences are reducible to the same physical time, what status should...
This volume addresses the question of time from the perspective of the time of nature. Its aim is to provide some insights about the nature of time...
