3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

Recommendations

Info

366 11 History and Philosophy of Biology—Mayr’s Third Synthesis The principles he listed (1982d: 75–76) as a good basis for a philosophy of biology include: (1) Theories of physics and chemistry alone are insufficient fully to understand organisms. (2) The historical nature of organisms must be considered, in particular their possession of a genetic program. (3) Individuals at most levels are unique and form populations. (4) There are two biologies, functional and evolutionary biology. (5) The history of biology has been dominated by the establishment of concepts (their maturation, modification and occasionally their rejection). (6) The complexity of living systems is hierarchically organized and the higher levels are characterized by the emergence of novelties. (7) Observation and comparison are methods in biological research that are as scientific and heuristic as the experiment. (8) The insistence on the autonomy of biology does not mean an endorsement of vitalism or any other theory that is in conflict with the laws of chemistry and physics. Four areas with many open questions characterize the current frontier of biology: (1) the structure and functioning of the genome, (2) the ontogeny of organisms from the zygote to the adult stage, (3) the functioning of the brain with its billions of nerve cells, and (4) the interactions of different organisms in a complex ecosystem. A philosophy of biology must include a consideration of all concepts of functional and evolutionary biology, systematics, behavioral biology and ecology. At the same time it should stay equally far away from vitalism and from a physicalist reductionism that is unable to do justice to specifically biological phenomena and systems, Mayr stated. He did not establish another (third) philosophy of biology between vitalism and physicalism, but had in mind a “biological reductionism” capable of explaining also specifically biological phenomena (Junker 2007). Teleology In view of the composite nature of the concept of teleology the literature on this subject had been very confused until Mayr clarified this situation in several articles and chapters in his books (1974e, 1982d, 1984b, 1988e, 1992b, 1998e, 2004a). He distinguished four or five categories of teleology as follow: (1) Teleomatic processes: Automatically achieved, like a rock falling to the ground. Such processes have an endpoint but they never have a goal. (2) Teleonomic processes: A process or behavior that owes its goal-directedness to the influence of an evolved program. The controlling genetic program is constantly adjusted by the selective value of the achieved endpoint. The goal is already coded in the program that directs these activities.
Philosophy of Biology 367 (3) Purposive behavior in thinking organisms; widespread in mammals and birds (when, e.g., jays bury acorns and return later to these caches). (4) [Adapted features: Mayr thinks that the word teleological would not seem appropriate for phenomena that do not involve movements, like adapted features.] (5) Cosmic teleology: Change in the world was assumed to be due to an inner force or tendency toward progress and to ever-greater perfection (finalism). Modern science refuted cosmic teleology during the first half of the 20th century. The seemingly upward trend in organic evolution is explained by natural selection that favors the rise of ever better-adapted species (Darwin). Whether this upwardtrendisprogressisstillcontroversial. Reductionism and Emergence The analysis of biological phenomena in terms of chemical and physical laws is called reduction. Mayr (1982d, 2004a) distinguished three categories of reductionism: (1) Constitutive reductionism asserts that the material composition of organisms is exactly the same as that found in the inorganic world. This, of course, is accepted by modern biologists, none of whom is a vitalist. (2) Explanatory reductionism claims that one cannot understand a whole until one has dissected it into its smallest components at the lowest level of integration. Biologists, however, know that dealing with the separated components of a complex biological system yields no information about their interactions (the whole is more than the sum of its parts). Emergent properties often appear in the upper levels of complex biological systems (“emergence”). (3) Theory reductionism postulates that the theories and generalizations formulated in biology are only special cases of theories and laws formulated in the physical sciences, in other words biological theories can be “reduced” to physical theories. It is only in functional biology of proximate causations that theory reduction is occasionally feasible, but no principle of evolutionary biology of ultimate causation can ever be reduced to the laws of physics or chemistry. Mayr concluded his discussions stating that reductionism can be ignored in the construction of any philosophy of biology, at least in his rather restricted meaning of this concept. Note here Mayr’s distinction between Explanatory Reductionism and Analysis mentioned above (p. 365). In a letter to the journal Nature, Mayr (1988b) objected to the claims of Steven Weinberg that the SSC, the Superconducting Supercollider, would provide a much greater understanding of the universe. Reduction into smaller and smaller parts is a form of analysis, but it very rarely sheds much light on the nature of the higher level systems (with which Weinberg agreed). Yet he still believed that a further understanding of the nature of the atomic forces would be contributing to an understanding of the deepest riddles of the universe. Mayr rejected this claim
Page 2 and 3:
Jürgen Haffer Ornithology, Evoluti
Page 4 and 5:
Jürgen Haffer Ornithology, Evoluti
Page 6 and 7:
Preface Ernst Mayr (1904-2005), emi
Page 8 and 9:
Contents Introduction 1 Part I The
Page 10 and 11:
Contents IX 2 Bibliography of Ernst
Page 12 and 13:
2 Introduction and speciation, the
Page 14 and 15:
4 Introduction (1928-1929) to repla
Page 16 and 17:
Ernst Mayr has been an observer all
Page 18 and 19:
The Family 9 court system. He had a
Page 20 and 21:
The Family 11 Fig.1.1. Family genea
Page 22 and 23:
The Family 13 where they learned La
Page 24 and 25:
Birdwatching 15 even finishing befo
Page 26 and 27:
Birdwatching 17 Fig.1.5. ErnstMayr
Page 28 and 29:
Birdwatching 19 Fig.1.6. Ernst Mayr
Page 30 and 31:
Birdwatching 21 he simply smoked ci
Page 32 and 33:
University Student in Greifswald an
Page 34 and 35:
Page 36 and 37:
Page 38 and 39:
Page 40 and 41:
Page 42 and 43:
Friendships at School and Universit
Page 44 and 45:
2 The Budding Scientist PhD Thesis
Page 46 and 47:
TheInfluenceofTeachers 37 excellent
Page 48 and 49:
Erwin Stresemann—Teacher and Frie
Page 50 and 51:
Erwin Stresemann—Teacher and Frie
Page 52 and 53:
Assistant Curator at the Museum of
Page 54 and 55:
Page 56 and 57:
Page 58 and 59:
Expeditions to New Guinea and the S
Page 60 and 61:
Page 62 and 63:
Page 64 and 65:
Page 66 and 67:
Page 68 and 69:
Page 70 and 71:
Page 72 and 73:
Page 74 and 75:
Page 76 and 77:
Page 78 and 79:
Page 80 and 81:
Page 82 and 83:
Page 84 and 85:
Page 86 and 87:
Page 88 and 89:
Page 90 and 91:
Page 92 and 93:
Page 94 and 95:
Page 96 and 97:
Page 98 and 99:
Page 100 and 101:
Page 102 and 103:
Part II Ornithologist and Evolution
Page 104 and 105:
96 3 The New York Years (1931-1953)
Page 106 and 107:
98 3 The New York Years (1931-1953)
Page 108 and 109:
100 3 The New York Years (1931-1953
Page 110 and 111:
Page 112 and 113:
Page 114 and 115:
Page 116 and 117:
Page 118 and 119:
Page 120 and 121:
Page 122 and 123:
Page 124 and 125:
Page 126 and 127:
Page 128 and 129:
Page 130 and 131:
Page 132 and 133:
Page 134 and 135:
Page 136 and 137:
Page 138 and 139:
Page 140 and 141:
Page 142 and 143:
Page 144 and 145:
Page 146 and 147:
Page 148 and 149:
4 Ornithologist and Zoogeographer B
Page 150 and 151:
142 4 Ornithologist and Zoogeograph
Page 152 and 153:
Page 154 and 155:
Page 156 and 157:
Page 158 and 159:
Page 160 and 161:
Page 162 and 163:
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
Page 168 and 169:
Page 170 and 171:
Page 172 and 173:
Page 174 and 175:
Page 176 and 177:
Page 178 and 179:
Page 180 and 181:
Page 182 and 183:
Page 184 and 185:
Page 186 and 187:
Page 188 and 189:
Page 190 and 191:
Page 192 and 193:
184 5 Biological Species and Specia
Page 194 and 195:
Page 196 and 197:
Page 198 and 199:
Page 200 and 201:
Page 202 and 203:
Page 204 and 205:
Page 206 and 207:
Page 208 and 209:
Page 210 and 211:
Page 212 and 213:
Page 214 and 215:
Page 216 and 217:
Page 218 and 219:
Page 220 and 221:
Page 222 and 223:
Page 224 and 225:
Page 226 and 227:
Page 228 and 229:
Page 230 and 231:
Page 232 and 233:
Page 234 and 235:
Page 236 and 237:
Page 238 and 239:
Page 240 and 241:
Page 242 and 243:
Page 244 and 245:
Page 246 and 247:
Page 248 and 249:
Page 250 and 251:
6 Life in North America during Worl
Page 252 and 253:
244 6 Life in North America during
Page 254 and 255:
Page 256 and 257:
Page 258 and 259:
Page 260 and 261:
Page 262 and 263:
Part III Professor of Zoology at Ha
Page 264 and 265:
256 7 The Harvard Years (1953-2005)
Page 266 and 267:
Page 268 and 269:
Page 270 and 271:
Page 272 and 273:
Page 274 and 275:
8 Evolutionary Biology— Mayr’s
Page 276 and 277:
268 8 Evolutionary Biology—Mayr
Page 278 and 279:
Page 280 and 281:
Page 282 and 283:
Page 284 and 285:
Page 286 and 287:
Page 288 and 289:
Page 290 and 291:
Page 292 and 293:
284 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man his coll
Page 294 and 295:
286 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man addresse
Page 296 and 297:
288 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man undertak
Page 298 and 299:
290 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man unaware
Page 300 and 301:
292 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man His hand
Page 302 and 303:
294 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man Prize (1
Page 304 and 305:
296 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man the inte
Page 306 and 307:
298 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man I have s
Page 308 and 309:
300 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man Fig.9.4.
Page 310 and 311:
302 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man not mali
Page 312 and 313:
304 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man papers d
Page 314 and 315:
306 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man 2005. Me
Page 316 and 317:
308 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man Fig.9.5b
Page 318 and 319:
310 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man health i
Page 320 and 321:
312 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man person a
Page 322 and 323:
314 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man with a r
Page 324 and 325: 316 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man conceptu
Page 326 and 327: 318 9 Ernst Mayr—the Man the two
Page 328 and 329: 10 Systematics and Classification T
Page 330 and 331: 322 10 Systematics and Classificati
Page 346 and 347: 11 History and Philosophy of Biolog
Page 348 and 349: 340 11 History and Philosophy of Bi
Page 384 and 385: 376 12 Summary: Appreciation of Ern
Page 390 and 391: Acknowledgments Iamdeeplygratefulto
Page 392 and 393: List of Abbreviations AAAS American
Page 394 and 395: 386 References Beehler BM, Pratt TK
Page 396 and 397: 388 References Cracraft J (2002) Go
Page 398 and 399: 390 References Haffer J (1997a) Ess
Page 400 and 401: 392 References Keast JA (1996) Avia
Page 402 and 403: 394 References Olson SL (1975) The
Page 404 and 405: 396 References Smith JJ (1936) Eric
Page 406 and 407: 398 References Wiglesworth LW (1898
Page 408 and 409: Appendix 1 Curriculum Vitae (includ
Page 410 and 411: Appendix 1 403 1978 Prêmio Jabuti,
Page 412 and 413: Appendix 1 405 Society Offices Linn
Page 414 and 415: Appendix 2 407 1926c Das Freibrüte
Page 416 and 417: Appendix 2 409 1932 1932a Birds col
Page 418 and 419: Appendix 2 411 1936g Melidectes bel
Page 420 and 421: Appendix 2 413 1941e Birds collecte
Page 422 and 423: Appendix 2 415 1944f Chromosomes an
Page 424 and 425:
Appendix 2 417 1947g On the correct
Page 426 and 427:
Appendix 2 419 1952e Six new subspe
Page 428 and 429:
Appendix 2 421 1954g The tail molt
Page 430 and 431:
Appendix 2 423 1958c Concluding rem
Page 432 and 433:
Appendix 2 425 in E. Mayr, Evolutio
Page 434 and 435:
Appendix 2 427 1964l Introduction [
Page 436 and 437:
Appendix 2 429 1967d Subfamily Pach
Page 438 and 439:
Appendix 2 431 in Acta Soc. Zool. B
Page 440 and 441:
Appendix 2 433 1974b The diversity
Page 442 and 443:
Appendix 2 435 1976m Evolution and
Page 444 and 445:
Appendix 2 437 Mankind 13:430; P.W.
Page 446 and 447:
Appendix 2 439 (1984) in Queen’s
Page 448 and 449:
Appendix 2 441 1984c Evolution and
Page 450 and 451:
Appendix 2 443 1987b The status of
Page 452 and 453:
Appendix 2 445 1990 1990a The Myth
Page 454 and 455:
Appendix 2 447 1992f Haldane’s Ca
Page 456 and 457:
Appendix 2 449 1995g The search for
Page 458 and 459:
Appendix 2 451 1999 1999a Thoughts
Page 460 and 461:
List of Books by Ernst Mayr 453 200
Page 462 and 463:
Coauthorship 455 Coauthorship In th
Page 464 and 465:
Appendix 3 457 (4) Systematics 1942
Page 466 and 467:
Index Achievements 379 Adaptation 2
Page 468 and 469:
Index 461 Faunas 164-165 Family 8-1
Page 470 and 471:
Index 463 Realism and education 372
show all

3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?