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This is a concise, comprehensive, and accessible introduction to the philosophy of biology written by a leading authority on the subject. Geared to philosophers, biologists, and students of both, the book provides sophisticated and innovative coverage of the central topics and many of the latest developments in the field. Emphasizing connections between biological theories and other areas of philosophy, and carefully explaining both philosophical and biological terms, Peter Godfrey-Smith discusses the relation between philosophy and science; examines the role of laws, mechanistic explanation, and idealized models in biological theories; describes evolution by natural selection; and assesses attempts to extend Darwin’s mechanism to explain changes in ideas, culture, and other phenomena. Further topics include functions and teleology, individuality and organisms, species, the tree of life, and human nature. The book closes with detailed, cutting-edge treatments of the evolution of cooperation, of information in biology, and of the role of communication in living systems at all scales.Authoritative and up-to-date, this is an essential guide for anyone interested in the important philosophical issues raised by the biological sciences.

Biology --- Philosophy --- Biology - Philosophy --- Vitalism --- Philosophy. --- Allele. --- Altruism. --- Ambiguity. --- Asexual reproduction. --- Bacteria. --- Behavior. --- Ben Kerr. --- Biological Theory (journal). --- Biologist. --- Biology. --- Causality. --- Cell biology. --- Cell division. --- Ceteris paribus. --- Charles Darwin. --- Chromosome. --- Cistron. --- Cladistics. --- Common descent. --- Computation. --- Cooperation. --- Copying. --- Darwinism. --- Derek. --- Developmental biology. --- Ecology. --- Elliott Sober. --- Emergence. --- Eukaryote. --- Evolution of the eye. --- Evolution. --- Evolutionary biology. --- Evolutionary game theory. --- Explanation. --- Fitness (biology). --- Further (bus). --- Gene Frequency. --- Gene expression. --- Gene pool. --- Gene product. --- Gene. --- Genotype. --- Gregor Mendel. --- Harvard University. --- Idealization. --- Interactor. --- John Maynard Smith. --- Kim Sterelny. --- Kin selection. --- Kleiber's law. --- Kritika (journal). --- Marc Ereshefsky. --- Mating. --- Mendelian inheritance. --- Metabolism. --- Model organism. --- Molecular biology. --- Molecule. --- Multicellular organism. --- Natural selection. --- Nucleic acid sequence. --- Nucleotide. --- On the Origin of Species. --- Organism. --- Phenotype. --- Phenotypic plasticity. --- Philosopher. --- Philosophy of biology. --- Philosophy of science. --- Phylogenetics. --- Phylum. --- Physical law. --- Plant breeding. --- Prisoner's dilemma. --- Probability. --- Protein. --- RNA. --- Regulation of gene expression. --- Reproduction. --- Reproductive success. --- Result. --- Ribosome. --- Richard Dawkins. --- Scientist. --- Sexual reproduction. --- Single-nucleotide polymorphism. --- Skillings. --- Species. --- Spontaneous generation. --- Stanford University. --- Student (magazine). --- The Philosopher. --- Theory. --- Trade-off. --- Trait theory. --- Unit of selection. --- Universal Darwinism. --- Weisberg. --- Willi Hennig. --- Writing.