Unification, T-theoreticity, and Testing
The Case of Fitness in Natural Selection
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21461608 |
|---|---|
| Authors | José Díez (0000-0002-1082-6020, Universitat de Barcelona, corresponding author), Santiago Ginnobili (0000-0001-5375-965X, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas), Pablo Lorenzano (0000-0002-6047-6313, National University of Quilmes) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 90 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 2995-3015 |
| Publication date | 2025-10-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Erkenntnis (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0165-0106 • E-ISSN: 1572-8420 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s10670-024-00826-3 |
| OpenAlex | W4401345807 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 36 |
Theoreticity and unification are two main issues discussed in philosophy of science. The first attempts to clarify the different roles of concepts used in a scientific theory. The second concerns the role of unification in scientific explanation and scientific progress. Both discussions have followed separate, independent paths. In this paper, we examine the interrelatedness of these two notions by focusing on classical particle mechanics and the theory of natural selection. We claim that they are interconnected in two distinct ways. On the one hand, a theory’s unifying power relies on the presence of some theoretical concepts that apply to heterogeneous phenomena through the assumption of a (sometimes unstated) general principle. On the other hand, a sensible application of the theoreticity criterion to these integrating concepts requires the unification not being spurious. We conclude that a correct determination of the theoreticty status requires analyzing how specific applications of different parts of a theory interact with each other
Epistemology · Natural science · Natural selection · Ontology · Philosophy of science · Physics · Scientific theory · Spurious relationship · Theoretical physics · Unification · Computer Science · Ecosystem dynamics and resilience · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation · Philosophy · Philosophy and History of Science · Artificial Intelligence
The Logical Structure of Mathematical Physics
An Architectonic for Science
Unifying Scientific Theories
How to Define Theoretical Terms
Functional Analysis
Explanation and Scientific Understanding
The Encyclopedia of philosophy
Darwinian functional biology
Guiding Principles and Special Laws
Missing concepts in natural selection theory reconstructions
Wallace’s and Darwin’s natural selection theories
Scientific explanation as ampliative, specialized embedding
A Program For The Individuation Of Scientific Concepts
Studies in the Logic of Explanation
Explanatory Unification
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |