Bücher der Reihe History and Philosophy of Biology

This book provides a philosophical examination of what has been called the most powerful metaphor in biology: The machine metaphor. It discusses the idea that living systems can be understood through the lens of engineering methods and machine metaphors from both historical, theoretical, and practical perspectives.

Organismal biology is an established scholarly discipline, yet its origins have been obscured by Darwinian histories of biology. Esposito presents a historiography of organicist and holistic thought through an examination of the work of leading biologists from Britain and America.

The book investigates the question of biological identity from the perspectives of metaphysics and the philosophy of biology.

Natural kinds are an important topic in current philosophical debate. This edited collection examines kinds from a new focal point, that of the empirical activities and categorizations used by scientists to define them. An esteemed group of contributors explore the nature of kinds and kinding across a variety of disciplines.

This is an innovative study into the role of action in the natural world. Primitive (non-intentional) action in humans is discussed as a form of agency common to many organisms - an area neglected in recent scholarship. This approach makes an important contribution to current philosophical debate on the nature and origins of agency.

Focusing on the work of William James (1842-1910), this study looks at Darwinian evolution within the context of a person-oriented philosophy. McGranahan argues for James as an innovator of evolutionary concepts and an early proponent of non-reductionist Darwinism.

Philosophy of Biology Before Biology examines biological and proto-biological writings from the mid-eighteenth century to the early nineteenth century (from Buffon to Cuvier; Kant to Oken; and Kielmeyer).

Natural kinds are an important topic in current philosophical debate. This edited collection examines kinds from a new focal point, that of the empirical activities and categorizations used by scientists to define them. An esteemed group of contributors explore the nature of kinds and kinding across a variety of disciplines.

By collecting for the first time essays on the most relevant philosophers who have dealt with the biologist Jakob von Uexküll (1864-1944), the book generates a global picture of his previously unaccounted and yet enormous impact on philosophy of the 20th Century and on current debates.

In bringing together a global community of philosophers, Global Epistemologies and Philosophies of Science develops novel perspectives on global epistemology and academic philosophy of science.

This book provides a philosophical examination of what has been called the most powerful metaphor in biology: The machine metaphor. It discusses the idea that living systems can be understood through the lens of engineering methods and machine metaphors from both historical, theoretical, and practical perspectives.