This book offers to the international reader a collection of original articles of some of the most skillful historians and philosophers of biology currently working in Latin American universities. During the last decades, increasing attention has been paid in Latin America to the history and philosophy of biology, but since many local authors prefer to write in Spanish or in Portuguese, their ideas have barely crossed the boundaries of the continent. This volume aims to remedy this state of things, providing a good sample of this production to the English speaking readers, bringing together contributions from researchers working in Brazilian, Argentinean, Chilean, Colombian and Mexican universities.
The stress on the regional provenance of the authors is not intended to suggest the existence of something like a Latin American history and philosophy of biology, supposedly endowed with distinctive features. On the contrary, the editors firmly believethat advances in this field can be achieved only by stimulating the integration in the international debate. Based on this assumption, the book focuses on two topics, life and evolution , and presents a selection of contributions addressing issues such as the history of the concept of life, the philosophical reflection on life manipulation and life extension, the structure and development of evolutionary theory as well as human evolution.
Life and Evolution – Latin American Essays on the History and Philosophy of Biology will provide the international reader with a rather complete picture of the ongoing research in the history and philosophy of biology in Latin America, offering a snapshot of this dynamic community. It will also contribute to contextualize and develop the debate concerning life and evolution, and the relation between the two phenomena.

lgrsnf/646.pdf

Baravalle, Lorenzo; Zaterka, Luciana

Springer Nature Switzerland AG

History, Philosophy and Theory of the Life Sciences, 1st edition 2020, Cham, 2020

Switzerland, Switzerland

1st ed. 2020, PS, 2020

Apr 11, 2020

Source title: Life and Evolution: Latin American Essays on the History and Philosophy of Biology (History, Philosophy and Theory of the Life Sciences (26))

Foreword
Acknowledgments
Contents
Contributors
Getting to Know the Contributors
Chapter 1: Introduction to Life and Evolution
1.1 The History and Philosophy of Biology in Latin America
1.2 Content of the Book
References
Chapter 2: Weldon’s Unpublished Manuscript: An Attempt at Reconciliation Between Mendelism and Biometry?
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Weldon’s Objections to Mendel’s Proposal
2.3 Weldon’s View on Inheritance
2.4 Weldon’s Unpublished Views of Mendel’s Proposal and Mendelian Contributions
2.5 Final Remarks
References
Chapter 3: Blood, Transfusions, and Longevity
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Metaphysics, Practice, and Forgetfulness
3.3 “Comradely Exchange of Life”
3.4 Blood and Transhumanism
3.5 Concluding Remarks
References
Chapter 4: Performative Epistemology and the Philosophy of Experimental Biology: A Synoptic Overview
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Constrained Action
4.3 Standardization
4.4 Epistemic “Tightening”
4.5 Extrapolation
4.6 Conclusion
References
Chapter 5: Life on Earth Is Not a Passenger, but a Driver: Explaining the Transition from a Physicochemical to a Life-Constrained World from an Organizational Perspective
5.1 Introduction
5.2 The Organizational Approach to Biological and Ecological Systems
5.3 How Marine Life Makes Clouds
5.4 The Organizational Approach Applied to the Life-Clouds System
5.5 Concluding Remarks
References
Chapter 6: Cooperation and the Gradual Emergence of Life and Teleonomy
6.1 The Fundamental Problem: The Gradual Emergence of Life and Purpose
6.2 The Ahistorical Approach to the Origins of Life
6.3 Biology in a Continuum with Chemistry
6.4 The Peculiar Stability of Autocatalytic Reactions
6.5 Complexification and Cooperation
6.6 Cooperation and Teleonomy
References
Chapter 7: Evolutionary Debunking Arguments and Moral Realism
7.1 Debunking Arguments
7.1.1 The Modal Argument
7.1.2 The Parsimony Argument
7.2 Street’s Debunking Argument
7.3 A Version of Moral Realism Based on Realism Itself: A Critical Examination of Street’s Argument
7.4 Reassessing the Superiority of the Adaptive Link Account Over the Tracking Account
7.5 Conclusions
References
Chapter 8: The Darwinian Naturalization of Teleology
8.1 Introduction
8.2 Adaptation and Design
8.3 The Mistake to Avoid
8.4 Functions as Causal Roles
8.5 Effectiveness and Fitness
8.6 Biological Design: Natural Selection
References
Chapter 9: Drift as a Force of Evolution: A Manipulationist Account
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Drift as a Force and Its Enemies
9.3 Causes and Forces
9.4 The Manipulationist Account of Explanatory Depth
9.5 Force-Explanations as Deep Explanations
9.6 Drift as a Force
9.7 Conclusion
References
Chapter 10: Laws, Models, and Theories in Biology: A Unifying Interpretation
10.1 Introduction
10.2 The Concept of Law from the Point of View of Metatheoretical Structuralism
10.2.1 Laws in Population Dynamics
10.3 The Concept of Model from the Point of View of Metatheoretical Structuralism
10.3.1 Models in Population Dynamics
10.4 The Concept of Theory from the Point of View of Metatheoretical Structuralism
10.4.1 The Theory-Net of Population Dynamics
The Basic Theory-Element of Population Dynamics
The Basic Core of Population Dynamics
The Intended Applications and the Basic Theory-Element of Population Dynamics
The Empirical Claim of Population Dynamics
Specializations of Population Dynamics
10.5 Making Them Explicit: Laws and the Connection of Models to Theories: Discussion on the Basis of Previous Analysis
10.5.1 On Claim (a) That There Are “Laws” in Biological Sciences
10.5.2 On Claim (b) That Many of the Heterogeneous and Different “Models” of Biology Can Be Accommodated Under Some “Theory”
10.5.3 On Claim (c) about the Unifying Power of Biological Theories
10.6 Conclusion
References
Chapter 11: Systemic Analysis and Functional Explanation: Structure and Limitations
11.1 Introduction
11.2 Systemic Approach to Function
11.3 Systemic Analysis, an Application Example
11.4 The Systemic Approach as a Factive Theory
11.5 Can the Systemic Approach Account for Every Functional Explanation in Biology?
11.6 The Explanandum of Functional Systemic Explanations and the Order of Determination
11.7 Conclusion: Systemic Analysis and Functional Explanation
References
Correction to: Laws, Models, and Theories in Biology: A Unifying Interpretation
Correction to: Chapter 10 in: L. Baravalle, L. Zaterka (eds.), Life and Evolution, History, Philosophy and Theory of the Life Sciences 26, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39589-6_10
Index

"This book offers to the international reader a collection of original articles of some of the most skillful historians and philosophers of biology currently working in Latin American universities. During the last decades, increasing attention has been paid in Latin America to the history and philosophy of biology, but since many local authors prefer to write in Spanish or in Portuguese, their ideas have barely crossed the boundaries of the continent. This volume aims to remedy this state of things, providing a good sample of this production to the English speaking readers, bringing together contributions from researchers working in Brazilian, Argentinian, Chilean, Colombian and Mexican universities. The stress on the regional provenance of the authors is not intended to suggest the existence of something like a Latin American history and philosophy of biology, supposedly endowed with distinctive features. On the contrary, the editors firmly believe that advances in this field can be achieved only by stimulating the integration in the international debate. Based on this assumption, the book focuses on two topics, life and evolution, and presents a selection of contributions addressing issues such as the history of the concept of life, the philosophical reflection on life manipulation and life extension, the structure and development of evolutionary theory as well as human evolution. Life and Evolution: Latin American Essays on the History and Philosophy of Biology will provide the international reader with a rather complete picture of the ongoing research in the history and philosophy of biology in Latin America, offering a snapshot of this dynamic community. It will also contribute to contextualize and develop the debate concerning life and evolution, and the relation between the two phenomena"--Back cover

This book offers to the international reader a collection of original articles of some of the most skillful historians and philosophers of biology currently working in Latin American universities. During the last decades, increasing attention has been paid in Latin America to the history and philosophy of biology, but since many local authors prefer to write in Spanish or in Portuguese, their ideas have barely crossed the boundaries of the continent. This volume aims to remedy this state of things, providing a good sample of this production to the English speaking readers, bringing together contributions from researchers working in Brazilian, Argentinean, Chilean, Colombian and Mexican universities.
The stress on the regional provenance of the authors is not intended to suggest the existence of something like a Latin American history and philosophy of biology, supposedly endowed with distinctive features. On the contrary, the editors firmly believe that advances in this field can be achieved only by stimulating the integration in the international debate. Based on this assumption, the book focuses on two topics, life and evolution , and presents a selection of contributions addressing issues such as the history of the concept of life, the philosophical reflection on life manipulation and life extension, the structure and development of evolutionary theory as well as human evolution.
Life and Evolution – Latin American Essays on the History and Philosophy of Biology will provide the international reader with a rather complete picture of the ongoing research in the history and philosophy of biology in Latin America, offering a snapshot of this dynamic community. It will also contribute to contextualize and develop the debate concerning life and evolution, and the relation between the two phenomena.

2024-04-15