January 29, 2002

Phil 456, Philosophy of Biology II

Lindley Darden

University of Maryland, College Park

Spring 2002

Aims of the course: This course will discuss topics about the philosophy of the biological sciences, including evolutionary biology, ecology, neuroscience, developmental biology, and molecular biology. It will deal with such as topics as whether biology can be reduced to chemistry/physics, the issue of reasoning in the discovery of mechanisms, the nature of biological theories, whether there are laws in biology, and the relations between theories and experiments. The readings will be articles by philosophers and scientists that use detailed cases from the sciences to address philosophical issues.

Useful details: Instructor: Lindley Darden, Professor of Philosophy. Office: 1107C Skinner; Mailbox: Philosophy Department, 1125A Skinner; Phone: 301-405-5699. Office hours: 2-3 Tuesday and by appointment. Email: darden@carnap.umd.edu Web page: www.inform.umd.edu/PHIL/faculty/LDarden/

Requirements. Two take-home examinations, a final examination, and short writing assignments. The take-home exams will be handed out in class, as indicated on the syllabus. They must be turned in on the due dates. A late exam receives a lower grade; the grade decreases by a portion of a letter grade for each day (24 hour period) that the exam is late; for example, turning in an exam due at 12:30 at 12:40 will decrease an A to an A-. Thus it is possible to receive an F because of lateness. However, an F is not a 0, which is given for failure to turn in an exam and will result in failure of the course.

Short writing assignments: For each class, each student should write one page. On this page, there should be a one paragraph summary of the main point(s) of the article, followed by at least two questions for discussion. Sufficient copies for everyone in the class should be brought to class. There will be 22 articles read in the course; 20 short writing assignments will be counted in the final grade. If you are sick or for some other excused reason unable to attend class, use that as one of the short assignments that you do not turn in. Late short assignments will usually not be accepted.

Regular class attendance for the entire class period is expected.

Grading: The take-home exams and final exam must all be completed to receive a passing grade in the course; in other words, completing them is a necessary, but not a sufficient, requirement to pass the course. Each take-home exam and the final exam count 30 points ; the average of 20 short writing assignments count 10 points in the final grade.

Listserv List: There is an email discussion forum for the class. All students should have email accounts and will be expected to receive the material on the list throughout the semester. If you do not have an email account, go to the Computer Science Center and sign up for a wam account. Once you have an email account, from your regular email account, subscribe to the listserv: send a message to listserv@listserv.umd.edu Put no subject in the subject line. As the only line of the text of the message type: subscribe phil456 your first and last names, e.g., subscribe phil456 Charles Darwin Reply to confirmation message with ok within 24 hours. When you want to send messages to the class, send the message to phil456@listserv.umd.edu Note the difference between the address for subscribing and the address for sending messages.

Honesty: Honesty on the part of students is presumed. The student is expected to be familiar with the University of Maryland Code of Academic Integrity available at

http://www.inform.umd.edu/jpo/ Students may get help with the grammar and structure of their writing, such as at the Writing Center (Room 0125, Taliaferro Hall), but they may not get unacknowledged help with the content of their work. Please contact the instructor with any questions about what is acceptable or unacceptable outside help. Learn exactly what plagiarism is and avoid it. The Code is administered by the Student Honor Council, which strives to promote a community of trust on the College Park campus. Allegations of academic dishonesty can be reported directly to the Honor Council (314-8206) by any member of the campus community.

Required text: Packet of articles for Phil 456 available at the Maryland Book Exchange

Recommended for reference, no need to buy:

Schaffner, Kenneth (1993), Discovery and Explanation in Biology and Medicine. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-73592-3 paperback

Sober, Elliott (ed.) (1994), Conceptual Issues in Evolutionary Biology: An Anthology. 2nd Ed. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-69162-0 (pbk)

Sterelny, Kim and Paul E. Griffiths (1999), Sex and Death: An Introduction to Philosophy of Biology. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-77304-3 (pbk)

Assignments:

Tues. Jan 29, Introduction

Thur. Jan 31, Evolutionary Theory

Darden, Lindley and Joseph A. Cain (1989), "Selection Type Theories," Philosophy of Science 56: 106-129. Available at

Research/pubs/dardencain.html

Tues. Feb. 5, Evolutionary Theory

Lennox, J. and Wilson, B. (1994),"Natural Selection and the Struggle for Existence," Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 25: 65-80.

Thur. Feb. 7, Evolutionary Theory

Reeve, H. K., and Sherman, P. W. (1993),"Adaptation and the Goals of Evolutionary Research," The Quarterly Review of Biology 68: 1-32.

Tues. Feb. 12, Evolutionary Theory

Wimsatt, W. (1980),"Reductionist Research Strategies and their Biases in the Units of Selection Controversy," in T. Nickles (ed.), Scientific Discovery: Case Studies. Dordrecht: Reidel: 213-259.

Thur. Feb. 14, Evolutionary Theory

Lloyd, E. (1987),"Confirmation of Ecological and Evolutionary Models," Biology and Philosophy 2: 277-293.

Tues. Feb. 19, Evolutionary Theory

Beatty, J. (1995),"The Evolutionary Contingency Thesis," in G. Wolters and J. Lennox (ed.) Concepts, Theories, and Rationality in the Biological Sciences. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press: 45-81.

Thur. Feb. 21, Developmental Biology

first take home midterm exam handed out

Gilbert. S. F. (1991),"Induction and the Origins of Developmental Genetics," in S. F. Gilbert (ed.), A Conceptual History of Modern Embryology. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press: 181-206.

Tues. Feb. 26, study day, work on take home midterm

Thur. Feb. 28, study day, work on take home midterm

Tues. Mar. 5, Developmental Biology

first take home midterm exam due

Thur. Mar. 7, Developmental Biology

Amundson, R. (1994),"Two Concepts of Constraint: Adaptationism and the Challenge from Developmental Biology," Philosophy of Science 61: 556-78.

Tues. Mar. 12, Developmental Biology

Kauffman, S. A. (1991),"The Sciences of Complexity and the Origins of Order," in A. Fine, M. Forbes, and L. Wessels (ed.), PSA 1990, vol. 2. East Lansing, MI: Philosophy of Science Association: 299-322.

Thur. Mar. 14, Ecology

Cooper, G.(1993), "The Competition Controversy in Ecology," Biology and Philosophy 8: 359-384.

Tues. Mar. 19, Ecology

Diamond, J. M.(1986), "Overview: Laboratory Experiments, Field Experiments, and Natural Experiments," in Diamond, J. and T. J. Case (ed.), Community Ecology. New York: Harper and Row: 3-22.

Thur. Mar. 21, Ecology

Levins, R. and R. Lewontin( 1980), "Dialectics and Reductionism in Ecology," Synthese 43:47-78.

Tues. Mar. 26, Spring Break, no class

Thur. Mar. 28, Spring Break, no class

Tues. Apr. 2, Molecular Biology

Darden, L., (manuscript), "Introduction to Philosophy of Molecular Biology" (handout)

Kitcher, Philip (1984), "1953 and All That: A Tale of Two Sciences," The Philosophical Review 93: 335-373.

Thurs. Apr. 4, Molecular Biology

second take home exam handed out

Waters, C. Kenneth (1990), "Why the Anti-reductionist Consensus Won't Survive the Case of Classical Mendelian Genetics," in Arthur Fine, Micky Forbes and Linda Wessels (eds.), PSA 1990, v. 1, East Lansing, MI: Philosophy of Science Association: 125-139.

Tues. Apr. 9 study day, work on take-home exam

Thurs. Apr. 11, Molecular Biology

Darden, Lindley (manuscript), "Relations Among Fields: Mendelian, Cytological, and Molecular Mechanisms" (handout)

Tues. Apr. 16, Molecular Biology

second take home exam due

Culp, Sylvia (1995), "Objectivity in Experimental Inquiry: Breaking Data-Technique Circles," Philosophy of Science 62:438-458.

Schaffner, Kenneth (1995), "Interactions Among Theory, Experiment, and Technology in Molecular Biology," in David Hull, Micky Forbes, and Richard Burian (eds.), PSA 1994, v. 2. East Lansing, MI: 192-205.

Thurs. Apr. 18, Neuroscience

Trumpler, Maria (1997)"Converging Images: Techniques of Intervention and Forms of Representation of Sodium-Channel Proteins in Nerve Cell Membranes," Journal of the History of Biology 30: 55-89.

Tues. Apr. 23, Neuroscience

Craver, Carl and Lindley Darden (2001), "Discovering Mechanisms in Neurobiology: The Case of Spatial Memory," in Peter Machamer, R. Grush, and P. McLaughlin (eds.), Theory and Method in the Neurosciences. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press: 112-137.

Thurs. Apr. 25, Neuroscience

Bechtel, William and Stufflebeam, R. S. (2001), "Epistemic Issues in Procuring Evidence about the Brain: The Importance of Research Instruments and Techniques," in W. Bechtel, P. Mandik, J. Mundale, and R. Stufflebeam (eds.), Philosophy and the Neurosciences: A Reader. Malden, MA: Blackwell: 55-81.

Tues. Apr. 30, Neuroscience

Clark Glymour (1994), "On the Methods of Cognitive Neuropsychology," British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 45: 815-835.

Thur. May 2, Neuroscience

Grush, Rick (2001), "The Semantic Challenge to Computational Neuroscience," in Peter Machamer, R. Grush, and P. McLaughlin (eds.), Theory and Method in the Neurosciences. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press: 155-172.

Tues. May 7, Function and Mechanism in Medicine

Toulmin, S. (1975),"Concepts of Function and Mechanism in Medicine and Medical Science," in H.T. Engelhardt, Jr. and S. F. Spicker (ed.), Evaluation and Explanation in the Biomedical Sciences. Dordrecht: Reidel: 51-66.

Thur. May 9, Overview and review

Tues. May 14, Overview and review

Monday, May 20, 10:30am-12:30pm, Final Exam

Have a nice summer