Pence, Charles H. (2013) The Early History of Chance in Evolution. [Preprint]
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Abstract
Work throughout the history and philosophy of biology frequently employs 'chance', 'unpredictability', 'probability', and many similar terms. One common way of understanding how these concepts were introduced in evolution focuses on two central issues: the first use of statistical methods in evolution (Galton), and the first use of the concept of "objective chance" in evolution (Wright). I argue that while this approach has merit, it fails to fully capture interesting philosophical reflections on the role of chance expounded by two of Galton's students, Karl Pearson and W.F.R. Weldon. Considering a question more familiar from contemporary philosophy of biology – the relationship between our statistical theories of evolution and the processes in the world those theories describe – is, I claim, a more fruitful way to approach both these two historical actors and the broader development of chance in evolution.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | ||||||
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| Keywords: | chance, Charles Darwin, evolution, Francis Galton, inheritance, Karl Pearson, natural selection, statistics, W.F.R. Weldon | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology > Evolutionary Theory General Issues > Causation General Issues > History of Philosophy of Science General Issues > History of Science Case Studies Specific Sciences > Probability/Statistics |
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| Depositing User: | Charles H. Pence | ||||||
| Date Deposited: | 19 Jul 2013 07:06 | ||||||
| Last Modified: | 19 Jul 2013 07:06 | ||||||
| Item ID: | 9890 | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Biology > Evolutionary Theory General Issues > Causation General Issues > History of Philosophy of Science General Issues > History of Science Case Studies Specific Sciences > Probability/Statistics |
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| Date: | 18 July 2013 | ||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/9890 |
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