The Philosophy of Ecology: From Science to Synthesis

Front Cover
David R. Keller, Frank B. Golley
University of Georgia Press, 2000 - Science - 366 pages
This is the first introductory anthology on the philosophy of ecology edited by an ecologist and a philosopher. It illustrates the range of philosophical approaches available to ecologists and provides a basis for understanding the thinking on which many of today's environmental ideas are founded. Collectively, these seminal readings make a powerful statement on the value of ecological knowledge and thinking in alleviating the many problems of modern industrial civilization.

Issues covered include:
  • the challenges of defining scientific ecology, tracing its genealogy, and distinguishing the science from various forms of "ecological-like" thinking
  • the ontology of ecological entities and processes
  • selected concepts of community, stability, diversity, and niche
  • the methodology of ecology (rationalism and empiricism, reductionism and holism)
  • the significance of evolutionary law for ecological science
 

Contents

Ecology as a Science of Synthesis
1
Henry A Gleason The Individualistic Concept of
42
Essentialism
71
An Ecological Metaphysic
81
PART TWO Community Niche Diversity and Stability
101
Karl Möbius An Oyster Bank Is a Biocönose or
111
Ruth Patrick Biological Diversity in Ecology
119
PART THREE Rationalism and Empiricism
133
PART FOUR Reductionism and Holism
171
Eugene P Odum The Emergence of Ecology as a
194
Richard Levins and Richard C Lewontin Dialectics and Reductionism
218
PART FIVE Ecology and Evolution
247
Stephen J Gould and Richard C Lewontin The Spandrels
263
Ernst Mayr How to Carry Out the Adaptationist Program?
277
The Missing
304
Afterword
320

Two Theories
141
Robert M May The Role of Theory in Ecology
147

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About the author (2000)

David R. Keller is an assistant professor of philosophy and director of the Center for the Study of Ethics at Utah Valley State College. Frank B. Golley (1930-2006) was Research Professor of Ecology, professor of zoology, and professor of environmental design at the University of Georgia. His books include A Primer for Environmental Literacy, A History of the Ecosystem Concept, and Tropical Rainforest Systems.

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