Evolution, explanation, ethics, and aesthetics : towards a philosophy of biology /
Ayala, Francisco José,1934-author.
"Evolution, Explanation, Ethics, and Aesthetics: Towards a Philosophy of Biology focuses on the dominant biological topic of evolution, with the unique benefit of being written by an eminent biologist who also happens to be a philosopher. It deals with the prevailing philosophical themes of how to explain the adaptation of organisms, the interplay of chance and necessity, and the recurrent topics of emergence, reductionism, and progress. Also extensively treated is the all-important (and of great interest) topic of how to explain human nature as a result of natural processes, and the encompassed issues of the foundations of morality and the brain-to-mind transformation. This book is a useful resource for seminar and college courses on the philosophy of biology as well as for researchers, academics, and students in evolutionary biology, behavior, genetics, and biodiversity. Additionally, it provides a stimulating discussion of the field for those with an interest in human biology and issues such as ethics, religion, and the mind, along with professional philosophers of science and those concerned with such issues as whether evolution is compatible with religion and/or where morality comes from."--
"Evolution, Explanation, Ethics, and Aesthetics: Towards a Philosophy of Biology focuses on the dominant biological topic of evolution, with the unique benefit of being written by an eminent biologist who also happens to be a philosopher. It deals with the prevailing philosophical themes of how to explain the adaptation of organisms, the interplay of chance and necessity, and the recurrent topics of emergence, reductionism, and progress. Also extensively treated is the all-important (and of great interest) topic of how to explain human nature as a result of natural processes, and the encompassed issues of the foundations of morality and the brain-to-mind transformation. This book is a useful resource for seminar and college courses on the philosophy of biology as well as for researchers, academics, and students in evolutionary biology, behavior, genetics, and biodiversity. Additionally, it provides a stimulating discussion of the field for those with an interest in human biology and issues such as ethics, religion, and the mind, along with professional philosophers of science and those concerned with such issues as whether evolution is compatible with religion and/or where morality comes from."--
Part I. Evolution. The Darwinian revolution -- Evolution is a "fact" -- Life's origin -- LUCA and the tree of life -- Three grand challenges of human biology -- Part II. Explanation. Design without designer -- Adaptation and novelty : teleological explanations in evolutionary biology -- Evolution and progress -- The scientific method -- Reduction and emergence -- Microevolution and macroevolution : a new evolutionary synthesis? -- Part III. Ethics, aesthetics, and religion. Ethics -- Aesthetics -- Religion -- Law and the courts -- Intelligent design -- Human evolution, genetic engineering, and cloning.
Description based on print version record.
Evolution (Biology)