Laws of nature play a central role in Kant's theoretical philosophy and are crucial to understanding his philosophy of science in particular. In this volume of new essays, the first systematic investigation of its kind, a distinguished team of scholars explores Kant's views on the laws of nature in the physical and life sciences. Their essays focus particularly on the laws of physics and biology, and consider topics including the separation in Kant's treatment of the physical and life sciences, the relation between universal and empirical laws of nature, and the role of reason and the understanding in imposing order and lawful unity upon nature. The volume will be of great interest to advanced students and scholars of Kant's philosophy of science, and to historians and philosophers of science more generally.

Laws of nature play a central role in Kant's theoretical philosophy and are crucial to understanding his philosophy of science in particular. In this volume of new essays, the first systematic investigation of its kind, a distinguished team of scholars explores Kant's views on the laws of nature in the physical and life sciences. Their essays focus particularly on the laws of physics and biology, and consider topics including the separation in Kant's treatment of the physical and life sciences, the relation between universal and empirical laws of nature, and the role of reason and the understanding in imposing order and lawful unity upon nature. The volume will be of great interest to advanced students and scholars of Kant's philosophy of science, and to historians and philosophers of science more generally.

Human destruction of the natural environment and recent technical advances in the life sciences raise urgent questions about our relationship to nature. In light of these questions, developing an adequate philosophy of the environment is a pressing concern. Angela Breitenbach shows that Kant's philosophy of nature provides a rich resource for grounding a contemporary environmental philosophy. Against the widespread view that Kant sees a clear division between humans and nature, the book explores how Kant's conception of nature relies on a vital analogy with human reason. The author concludes by showing how Kant's analogical account of nature can enrich current debates in environmental ethics and the philosophy of biology.