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Darwinian Heresies
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Book Synopsis Darwinian Heresies by : Abigail Lustig
Download or read book Darwinian Heresies written by Abigail Lustig and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2004-08-30 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Darwinian Heresies, which was originally published in 2004, prominent historians and philosophers of science trace the history of evolutionary thought, and challenge many of the assumptions that have built up over the years. Covering a wide range of issues starting in the eighteenth century, Darwinian Heresies brings us through the time of Charles Darwin and the Origin, and then through the twentieth century to the present. It is suggested that Darwin's true roots lie in Germany, not his native England, that Russian evolutionism is more significant than many are prepared to allow, and that the true influence on twentieth-century evolution biology was not Charles Darwin at all, but his often-despised contemporary, Herbert Spencer. The collection was intended to interest, to excite, to infuriate, and to stimulate further work.
Book Synopsis Darwinian Heresies by : Abigail Lustig
Download or read book Darwinian Heresies written by Abigail Lustig and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Darwinian Heresies, some of today's leading historians and philosophers of science trace the history of evolutionary thought, and challenge many of the assumptions that have built up over the years. Covering a wide range of issues starting in the eighteenth century, Darwinian Heresies brings us through the time of Charles Darwin and the Origin, and then through the twentieth century to the present. It is suggested that Darwin's true roots lie in Germany, not his native England, that Russian evolutionism is more significant than many are prepared to allow, and that the true influence on twentieth-century evolution biology was not Charles Darwin at all, but his often-despised contemporary, Herbert Spencer. The collection is guaranteed to interest, to excite, to infuriate, and to stimulate further work.
Book Synopsis The Heretic in Darwin's Court by : Ross A. Slotten
Download or read book The Heretic in Darwin's Court written by Ross A. Slotten and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2006-04-04 with total page 644 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During their lifetimes, Wallace and Darwin shared credit and fame for the independent and near-simultaneous discovery of natural selection. Their rivalry, usually amicable but occasionally acrimonious, forged modern evolutionary theory. Yet today, few people today know much about Wallace. This book explores the controversial life and scientific contributions of the Victorian traveler, scientist and spiritualist. His twelve years of often harrowing travels in the western and eastern tropics place him in the pantheon of the greatest explorer-naturalists of the nineteenth century. Tracing his discovery of natural selection, the book then follows the remaining fifty years of Wallace's eccentric and entertaining life. In addition to his divergence from Darwin on two fundamental issues--sexual selection and the origin of the human mind--he pursued topics that most scientific figures of his day conspicuously avoided, including spiritualism, phrenology, mesmerism, environmentalism, and life on Mars.--From publisher description.
Book Synopsis Did Darwin Write the Origin Backwards? by : Elliott Sober
Download or read book Did Darwin Write the Origin Backwards? written by Elliott Sober and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2011-03-31 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is it accurate to label Darwin’s theory "the theory of evolution by natural selection," given that the concept of common ancestry is at least as central to Darwin’s theory? Did Darwin reject the idea that group selection causes characteristics to evolve that are good for the group though bad for the individual? How does Darwin’s discussion of God in The Origin of Species square with the common view that he is the champion of methodological naturalism? These are just some of the intriguing questions raised in this volume of interconnected philosophical essays on Darwin. The author's approach is informed by modern issues in evolutionary biology, but is sensitive to the ways in which Darwin’s outlook differed from that of many biologists today. The main topics that are the focus of the book—common ancestry, group selection, sex ratio, and naturalism—have rarely been discussed in their connection with Darwin in such penetrating detail. Author Professor Sober is the 2008 winner of the Prometheus Prize. This biennial award, established in 2006 through the American Philosophical Association, is designed "to honor a distinguished philosopher in recognition of his or her lifetime contribution to expanding the frontiers of research in philosophy and science." This insightful collection of essays will be of interest to philosophers, biologists, and laypersons seeking a deeper understanding of one of the most influential scientific theories ever propounded.
Book Synopsis Darwinism and the Divine by : Alister E. McGrath
Download or read book Darwinism and the Divine written by Alister E. McGrath and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2013-05-20 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Darwinism and the Divine examines the implications ofevolutionary thought for natural theology, from the time ofpublication of Darwin's On the Origin of Species tocurrent debates on creationism and intelligent design. Questions whether Darwin's theory of natural selection reallyshook our fundamental beliefs, or whether they served to transformand illuminate our views on the origins and meaning of life Identifies the forms of natural theology that emerged in19th-century England and how they were affected by Darwinism The most detailed study yet of the intellectual background toWilliam Paley's famous and influential approach to naturaltheology, set out in 1802 Brings together material from a variety of disciplines,including the history of ideas, historical and systematic theology,evolutionary biology, anthropology, sociology, and the cognitivescience of religion Considers how Christian belief has adapted to Darwinism, andasks whether there is a place for design both in the world ofscience and the world of theology A thought-provoking exploration of 21st-century views onevolutionary thought and natural theology, written by theworld-renowned theologian and bestselling author
Book Synopsis Aristotle's Ladder, Darwin's Tree by : J. David. Archibald
Download or read book Aristotle's Ladder, Darwin's Tree written by J. David. Archibald and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2014-07-15 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Leading paleontologist David Archibald explores the rich history of visual metaphors for biological order from ancient times to the present and their influence on human beingsÕ perception of their place in nature. Specifically, Archibald focuses on ladders and trees, and the first appearance of trees to represent seasonal life cycles. Their use in ancient Roman decorations and genealogies was then appropriated by the early Christian Church to represent biblical genealogies. The late eighteenth century saw the idea of a tree reappropriated to visualize relationships in the natural world, sometimes with a creationist view, but in some instances suggesting evolution. Charles DarwinÕs On the Origin of Species (1859) exorcised the exclusively creationist view of the Òtree of life.Ó His ideas sparked an explosion of trees, mostly by younger acolytes in Europe. Although DarwinÕs influence waned in the early twentieth century, by midcentury his ideas held sway once again in time for another and even greater explosion of tree building, generated by the development of new theories on how to assemble trees, the birth of powerful computing, and the emergence of molecular technology. Throughout his far-reaching study, and with the use of many figures, Archibald connects the evolution of Òtree of lifeÓ iconography to our changing perception of the world and ourselves, offering uncommon insight into how we went from standing on the top rung of the biological ladder to embodying just one tiny twig on the tree of life.
Book Synopsis Darwin Mythology by : Kostas Kampourakis
Download or read book Darwin Mythology written by Kostas Kampourakis and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2024-06-30 with total page 327 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This accessible collection debunks pervasive myths about Darwin's life and work, deepening our understanding of the history of science.
Book Synopsis Debating Darwin by : Robert J. Richards
Download or read book Debating Darwin written by Robert J. Richards and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016-09-10 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two evolutionists debate the intellectual roots of Darwin’s theories, drawing connections to German Romanticism, the Scottish Enlightenment, and more. Charles Darwin is an icon of modern science, and his theory of evolution is commonly referenced by scientists and nonscientists alike. Yet there is a surprising amount we don’t know about the father of modern evolutionary thinking, his intellectual roots, or even the science he produced. Debating Darwin brings together two leading Darwin scholars—Robert J. Richards and Michael Ruse—to engage in a spirited and insightful dialogue, offering their interpretations of Darwin and their critiques of each other’s thinking. Examining key disagreements about Darwin that continue to confound even committed Darwinists, Richards and Ruse offer divergent views on the man and his ideas. Ruse argues that Darwin was quintessentially British, part of an intellectual lineage tracing back to the Industrial Revolution and thinkers such as Adam Smith and Thomas Robert Malthus. Ruse sees Darwin’s work in biology as an extension of their theories. In contrast, Richards presents Darwin as more cosmopolitan, influenced as much by French and German thinkers. Above all, argues Richards, it was Alexander von Humboldt who gave Darwin the conceptual tools he needed to formulate his evolutionary hypotheses. Together, the authors show how these contrasting views on Darwin’s influences can be felt in theories about the nature of natural selection, the role of metaphor in science, and the place of God in Darwin’s thought. The book concludes with a jointly authored chapter that brings this debate into the present, focusing on human evolution, consciousness, religion, and morality.
Download or read book Darwin Deleted written by Peter J. Bowler and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2013-03-22 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ideas and terminology of Darwinism are so pervasive these days that it seems impossible to avoid them, let alone imagine a world without them. But in this remarkable rethinking of scientific history, Peter J. Bowler does just that. He asks: What if Charles Darwin had not returned from the voyage of the Beagle and thus did not write On the Origin of Species? Would someone else, such as Alfred Russel Wallace, have published the selection theory and initiated a similar transformation? Or would the absence of Darwin’s book have led to a different sequence of events, in which biology developed along a track that did not precipitate a great debate about the impact of evolutionism? Would there have been anything equivalent to social Darwinism, and if so would the alternatives have been less pernicious and misappropriated? In Darwin Deleted, Bowler argues that no one else, not even Wallace, was in a position to duplicate Darwin’s complete theory of evolution by natural selection. Evolutionary biology would almost certainly have emerged, but through alternative theories, which were frequently promoted by scientists, religious thinkers, and moralists who feared the implications of natural selection. Because non-Darwinian elements of evolutionism flourished for a time in the real world, it is possible to plausibly imagine how they might have developed, particularly if the theory of natural selection had not emerged until decades after the acceptance of the basic idea of evolution. Bowler’s unique approach enables him to clearly explain the non-Darwinian tradition—and in doing so, he reveals how the reception of Darwinism was historically contingent. By taking Darwin out of the equation, Bowler is able to fully elucidate the ideas of other scientists, such as Richard Owen and Thomas Huxley, whose work has often been misunderstood because of their distinctive responses to Darwin. Darwin Deleted boldly offers a new vision of scientific history. It is one where the sequence of discovery and development would have been very different and would have led to an alternative understanding of the relationship between evolution, heredity, and the environment—and, most significantly, a less contentious relationship between science and religion. Far from mere speculation, this fascinating and compelling book forces us to reexamine the preconceptions that underlie many of the current controversies about the impact of evolutionism. It shows how contingent circumstances surrounding the publication of On the Origin of Species polarized attitudes in ways that still shape the conversation today.
Book Synopsis Darwin's Pious Idea by : Conor Cunningham
Download or read book Darwin's Pious Idea written by Conor Cunningham and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2010-12-03 with total page 563 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: According to British scholar Conor Cunningham, the debate today between religion and evolution has been hijacked by extremists: on one side stand fundamentalist believers who reject evolution outright; on the opposing side are fundamentalist atheists who claim that Darwin s theory rules out the possibility of God. Both sides are dead wrong, argues Cunningham, who is at once a Christian and a firm believer in the theory of evolution. In Darwin s Pious Idea Cunningham puts forth a trenchant, compelling case for both creation and evolution, drawing skillfully on an array of philosophical, theological, historical, and scientific sources to buttress his arguments.
Book Synopsis The Literary and Cultural Reception of Charles Darwin in Europe by : Thomas F. Glick
Download or read book The Literary and Cultural Reception of Charles Darwin in Europe written by Thomas F. Glick and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2014-05-22 with total page 656 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beyond his pivotal place in the history of scientific thought, Charles Darwin's writings and his theory of evolution by natural selection have also had a profound impact on art and culture and continue to do so to this day. The Literary and Cultural Reception of Charles Darwin in Europe is a comprehensive survey of this enduring cultural impact throughout the continent. With chapters written by leading international scholars that explore how literary writers and popular culture responded to Darwin's thought, the book also includes an extensive timeline of his cultural reception in Europe and bibliographies of major translations in each country.
Download or read book Defining Darwin written by Michael Ruse and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2009-12-04 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Michael Ruse is one of the foremost Charles Darwin scholars of our time. For forty years he has written extensively on Darwin, the scientific revolution that his work precipitated, and the nature and implications of evolutionary thinking for today. Now, in the year marking the two hundredth anniversary of Darwin''s birth and the one hundred fiftieth anniversary of his masterpiece, On the Origin of Species, Ruse reevaluates the legacy of Darwin in this collection of new and recent essays. Beginning with pre-Darwinian concepts of organic origins proposed by the great German philosopher Immanuel Kant, Ruse shows the challenges that Darwin''s radically different idea faced. He then discusses natural selection as a powerful metaphor; Alfred Russel Wallace, the co-discoverer of the theory of evolution; Herbert Spencer''s contribution to evolutionary biology; the synthesis of Mendelian genetics and natural selection; the different views of Julian Huxley and George Gaylord Simpson on evolutionary ethics; and the influence of Darwin''s ideas on literature. In the final section, Ruse brings the discussion up to date with a consideration of "evolutionary development" (dubbed "evo devo") as a new evolutionary paradigm and the effects of Darwin on religion, especially the debate surrounding Intelligent Design theory. Ruse offers a fresh perspective on topics old and new, challenging the reader to think again about the nature and consequences of what has been described as the biggest idea ever conceived.
Book Synopsis Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species by : James T. Costa
Download or read book Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species written by James T. Costa and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2014-06-09 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Darwin is credited with discovering evolution through natural selection, but Alfred Russel Wallace saw the same process at work in nature and elaborated the same theory. Dispelling misperceptions of Wallace as a secondary figure, James Costa reveals the two naturalists as equals in advancing one of the greatest scientific discoveries of all time.
Book Synopsis Orthogenesis versus Darwinism by : Igor Popov
Download or read book Orthogenesis versus Darwinism written by Igor Popov and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-08-22 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book reviews the convoluted history of orthogenesis with an emphasis of non-English sources, untangles relationships between various concepts of directed evolution and argues whether orthogenesis has something to offer modern biology. Darwinism claims that evolution occurs by selection from an extensive random variability. An alternative viewpoint—that the material for variability is limited and organisms are predisposed to vary in certain directions—is the essence of evolutionary concepts that can be grouped together under the name of orthogenesis. Dating back to Lamarck, orthogenesis has existed in many guises. Branded as mystical and discarded as unscientific, it keeps re-emerging in evolutionary discussions.
Book Synopsis Images of the Economy of Nature, 1650-1930 by : Antonello La Vergata
Download or read book Images of the Economy of Nature, 1650-1930 written by Antonello La Vergata and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2023-10-05 with total page 614 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book discusses ideas concerning the order and balance of nature (or "economy of nature") from the late 17th century to the early 20th century. The perspective taken is broad, longue durée and interdisciplinary, and reveals the interplay of scientific, philosophical, moral and social ideas. The story begins with natural theology (dating roughly to the onset of the so-called Newtonian Revolution) and ends with the First World War. The cut-off date has been chosen for the following reasons: the war changed the state of things, affecting man’s way of looking at, and relating to, nature both directly and indirectly; indeed, it put an end to most applications of Darwinism to society and history, including interpretations of war as a form of the struggle for existence. The author presents an overview of the different images of nature that were involved in these debates, especially in the late 19th century, when a large part of the scientific community paid lip service to ‘Darwinism’, while practically each expert felt free to interpret it in his own distinct way. The book also touches on the so-called ‘social Darwinism’, which was neither a real theory, nor a common body of ideas, and its various views of society and nature’s economy. Part of this book deals with the persistence of moralizing images of nature in the work of many authors. One of the main features of the book is its wealth of (detailed) quotations. In this way the author gives the reader the opportunity to see the original statements on which the author bases his discussion. The author privileges the analysis of different positions over a historiography offering a merely linear narrative based on general implications of ideas and theories. To revisit the concept of the so-called "Darwinian Revolution", we need to examine the various perspectives of scientists and others, their language and, so to speak, the lenses they used when reading "facts" and theories. The book ends with some general reflections on Darwin and Darwinisms (the plural is important) as a case study on the relationship between intellectual history, the history of science and contextual history. Written by a historian, this book really gives new, multidisciplinary perspectives on the "Darwinian Revolution."
Book Synopsis In Darwin's Shadow by : Michael Shermer
Download or read book In Darwin's Shadow written by Michael Shermer and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2002-08-15 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Virtually unknown today, Alfred Russel Wallace was the co-discoverer of natural selection with Charles Darwin and an eminent scientist who stood out among his Victorian peers as a man of formidable mind and equally outsized personality. Now Michael Shermer rescues Wallace from the shadow of Darwin in this landmark biography. Here we see Wallace as perhaps the greatest naturalist of his age--spending years in remote jungles, collecting astounding quantities of specimens, writing thoughtfully and with bemused detachment at his reception in places where no white man had ever gone. Here, too, is his supple and forceful intelligence at work, grappling with such arcane problems as the bright coloration of caterpillars, or shaping his 1858 paper on natural selection that prompted Darwin to publish (with Wallace) the first paper outlining the theory of evolution. Shermer also shows that Wallace's self-trained intellect, while powerful, also embraced surprisingly naive ideas, such as his deep interest in the study of spiritual manifestations and seances. Shermer shows that the same iconoclastic outlook that led him to overturn scientific orthodoxy as he worked in relative isolation also led him to embrace irrational beliefs, and thus tarnish his reputation. As author of Why People Believe Weird Things and founding publisher of Skeptic magazine, Shermer is an authority on why people embrace the irrational. Now he turns his keen judgment and incisive analysis to Wallace's life and his contradictory beliefs, restoring a leading figure in the rise of modern science to his rightful place.
Book Synopsis Religious Beliefs, Evolutionary Psychiatry, and Mental Health in America by : Kevin J. Flannelly
Download or read book Religious Beliefs, Evolutionary Psychiatry, and Mental Health in America written by Kevin J. Flannelly and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-04-08 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a new perspective on the association between religious beliefs and mental health. The book is divided into five parts, the first of which traces the development of theories of organic evolution in the cultural and religious context before Charles Darwin. Part II describes the major evolutionary theories that Darwin proposed in his three books on evolution, and the religious, sociological, and scientific reactions to his theories. Part III introduces the reader to the concept of evolutionary psychiatry. It discusses how different regions of the brain evolved over time, and explains that certain brain regions evolved to protect us from danger by assessing threats of harm in the environment, including other humans. Specifically, this part describes: how psychiatric symptoms that are commonly experienced by normal individuals during their everyday lives are the product of brain mechanisms that evolved to protect us from harm; the prevalence rate of psychiatric symptoms in the U.S. general population; how religious and other beliefs influence the brain mechanisms that underlie psychiatric symptoms; and the brain regions that are involved in different psychiatric disorders. Part IV presents the findings of U.S. studies demonstrating that positive beliefs about God and life-after-death, and belief in meaning-in-life and divine forgiveness have salutary associations with mental health, whereas negative beliefs about God and life-after-death, belief in the Devil and human evil, and doubts about one’s religious beliefs have pernicious associations with mental health. The last part of the book summarizes each section and recommends research on the brain mechanism underlying psychiatric symptoms, and the relationships among these brain mechanisms, religious beliefs, and mental health in the context of ETAS Theory.
