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Biology and history are often viewed as closely related
disciplines, with biology informed by history, especially in its
task of charting our evolutionary past. Maximizing the
opportunities for cross-fertilization in these two fields requires
an accurate reckoning of their commonalities and
differences—precisely what this volume sets out to achieve.
Specially commissioned essays by a team of recognized international
researchers cover the full panoply of topics in these fields and
include notable contributions on the correlativity of evolutionary
and historical explanations, applying to history the latest
causal-mechanical approach in the philosophy of biology, and the
question of generalized laws that might pertain across the two
subjects.  The collection opens with a vital
interrogation of general issues on explanation that apart from
potentially fruitful areas of interaction (could the etiology of
the causal-mechanical perspective in biology account for the
historical trajectory of the Roman Empire?) this volume also seeks
to chart relative certainties distinguishing explanations in
biology and history. It also assesses techniques such as the use of
probabilities in biological reconstruction, deployed to overcome
the inevitable gaps in physical evidence on early evolution.
Methodologies such as causal graphs and semantic explanation
receive in-depth analysis. Contributions from a host of prominent
and widely read philosophers ensure that this new volume has the
stature of a major addition to the literature. ​
Biology and history are often viewed as closely related
disciplines, with biology informed by history, especially in its
task of charting our evolutionary past. Maximizing the
opportunities for cross-fertilization in these two fields requires
an accurate reckoning of their commonalities and
differences-precisely what this volume sets out to achieve.
Specially commissioned essays by a team of recognized international
researchers cover the full panoply of topics in these fields and
include notable contributions on the correlativity of evolutionary
and historical explanations, applying to history the latest
causal-mechanical approach in the philosophy of biology, and the
question of generalized laws that might pertain across the two
subjects.
The collection opens with a vital interrogation of general
issues on explanation that apart from potentially fruitful areas of
interaction (could the etiology of the causal-mechanical
perspective in biology account for the historical trajectory of the
Roman Empire?) this volume also seeks to chart relative certainties
distinguishing explanations in biology and history. It also
assesses techniques such as the use of probabilities in biological
reconstruction, deployed to overcome the inevitable gaps in
physical evidence on early evolution. Methodologies such as causal
graphs and semantic explanation receive in-depth analysis.
Contributions from a host of prominent and widely read philosophers
ensure that this new volume has the stature of a major addition to
the literature.
Nelson Goodman (1906-1998) was one of the outstanding thinkers of
the 20th century. In a memorial note, Hilary Putnam considers him
to be "one of the two or three greatest analytic philosophers of
the post-World War II period." Goodman has left his mark in many
fields of philosophical investigation: Epistemology, Philosophy of
Science, Logic, Metaphysics, the General Theory of Symbols,
Philosophy of Languageand Philosophy of Art, all have been
challenged and enriched by the problems he has shown up, the
projects he developed from them and the solutions he has suggested.
In August 2006 a couple of Goodman aficionados met in Munich to
celebrate the Centennial. The proceedings of the ensuing
international conference are documented in this volume. The
contributions attest the fact that Goodman's thinking still holds
many treasures.
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