Analyzes the reasons why biologists have referred to and continue to refer to plasticity.
Plasticity has become an important topic in biology, with some even wondering if it has now acquired the theoretical importance in biology that the concept of the gene enjoyed at the beginning of the last century. In this historical and epistemological study, philosopher Antonine Nicoglou shows how the recurrence of the general idea of plasticity—throughout the history of the life sciences—indicates its essential role in the way we think about life processes. Although plasticity has become a key element in new evolutionary thinking, she argues, its role in contemporary biology is also not insignificant. Rather, as mobilized in contemporary biology, plasticity most often seeks to account for the specific nature of living systems.
The book is divided into two parts. The first takes up the history of plasticity from Aristotle to contemporary biology; the second part offers an original way of distinguishing between different phenomena described by ""plasticity."" In the process, the author explores what has led some biologists to speak of plasticity as a way of overcoming genetic determinism.
By:
Antonine Nicoglou
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 229mm,
Width: 152mm,
Spine: 25mm
Weight: 540g
ISBN: 9780226837147
ISBN 10: 0226837149
Pages: 320
Publication Date: 06 December 2024
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Introduction Part 1. Concepts of Plasticity in the History of the Life Sciences 1. Theories of Plasticity in the Philosophy of Nature 2. The Plastic Embryo 3. The Emergence of an Operational Concept of Plasticity in Genetics 4. Plasticity in Evolutionary Biology: A Boundary Concept 5. Defining Plasticity Part 2. Biological Plasticity: Two Ways to Explain Variation 6. Biological Plasticity, an Explanans in Developmental Process 7. Biological Plasticity, a Synonym for Biological Regulation? 8. Biological Plasticity, an Explanandum in Evolutionary Process 9. Plasticity in the Evolutionary Developmental Synthesis: Toward an Integration of Explanations? 10. Plasticity in the Life Sciences: Resistance or Recurrence Acknowledgments Notes References Index
Antonine Nicoglou is associate professor of philosophy of science at the University of Tours.
Reviews for Plasticity in the Life Sciences
“Philosophers of biology have been increasingly interested in the concept of plasticity in recent years, but a detailed philosophical treatment of the topic has yet to appear. Nicoglou’s excellent book therefore fills a major need. Nicoglou traces the history of the concept of plasticity and its use in different biological disciplines from Aristotle to the present, bringing out a wide range of significant continuities and differences and illuminating the varying relation of plasticity to crucial concepts such as variation, diversity, novelty, adaptation, regulation, and more. As well as being an essential read for anyone interested in the lively contemporary discussions of plasticity, this is a fine example of the integrated historical and philosophical approach to understanding biology.” -- John Dupré, author of “Processes of Life: Essays in the Philosophy of Biology”
