The Cambridge Companion to the Philosophy of Biology [Hardcover]

A team of experts examine one of the most exciting new areas in philosophy.Philosophy of biology is one of the most exciting new areas in philosophy and is attracting much attention from working scientists. This Companion, edited by two of the founders of the field, includes essays by senior scholars and up-and-coming younger scholars who collectively examine the main areas of the subject.Philosophy of biology is one of the most exciting new areas in philosophy and is attracting much attention from working scientists. This Companion, edited by two of the founders of the field, includes essays by senior scholars and up-and-coming younger scholars who collectively examine the main areas of the subject.The philosophy of biology is one of the most exciting new areas in the field of philosophy and one that is attracting much attention from working scientists. This Companion, edited by two of the founders of the field, includes newly commissioned essays by senior scholars and up-and-coming younger scholars who collectively examine the main areas of the subject - the nature of evolutionary theory, classification, teleology and function, ecology, and the problematic relationship between biology and religion, among other topics. Up-to-date and comprehensive in its coverage, this unique volume will be of interest not only to professional philosophers but also to students in the humanities and researchers in the life sciences and related areas of inquiry.Introduction David L. Hull and Michael Ruse; 1. Adaptation Tim Lewens; 2. Population genetics Roberta L. Millstein and Robert A. Skipper; 3. Units and levels of selection Elisabeth A. Lloyd; 4. What's wrong with the emergenist statistical interpretation of natural selection and random drift Robert N. Brandon and Grant Ramsey; 5. Gene Paul E. Griffiths and Karola Stotz; 6. Information in biology Peter Godfrey-Smith; 7. Reductionism (and antireductionism) in biology Alexander Rosenberg; 8. Mechanisms and models Lindley Darden; 9ló…