The Philosophy of Human EvolutionThis book provides a unique discussion of human evolution from a philosophical viewpoint, looking at the facts and interpretations since Charles Darwin's The Descent of Man. Michael Ruse explores such topics as the nature of scientific theories, the relationships between culture and biology, the problem of progress and the extent to which evolutionary issues pose problems for religious beliefs. He identifies these issues, highlighting the problems for morality in a world governed by natural selection. By taking a philosophical viewpoint, the full ethical and moral dimensions of human evolution are examined. This book engages the reader in a thorough discussion of the issues, appealing to students in philosophy, biology and anthropology. |
Contents
1 Evolutionary biology | 1 |
2 Human evolution | 39 |
3 Real science? Good science? | 66 |
4 Progress | 99 |
5 Knowledge | 128 |
6 Morality | 155 |
7 Sex orientation and race | 185 |
8 From eugenics to medicine | 225 |
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adaptive animals argued Australopithecus afarensis basic behavior belief biological progress biologists bipedalism brain Cambridge century certainly chapter Charles Darwin complex consilience critics culture Darwinian Dawkins disease ethics evidence evolutionary biology evolutionary medicine Evolutionary Psychology evolutionary theory evolutionist fact females final causes fossil function genes genetic German going Gould hominins Homo floresiensis homosexual human evolution humankind Huxley hypothesis ideas important individual instance issues Julian Huxley kind language less living London major males matter memes memetics metaphor mind moral move natural selection naturalist Neandertals notion obviously offspring organisms Origin perhaps philosopher population problem question race reason reproduction Richard Dawkins Ruse scientific seems sense sexual orientation sexual selection simply social species Spencer started Stephen Jay Gould struggle for existence survival things Thomas Henry Huxley thought tion today’s true variation women York