Chances and Propensities in Evo-Devo
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8397100 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Laura Nuño De La Rosa (0000-0003-0513-0077, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, corresponding author), Cristina Villegas (0000-0002-6402-5288, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 73 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 509-533 |
| Publication date | 2022-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-0882 • E-ISSN: 1464-3537 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/bjps/axz048 |
| OpenAlex | W2984777876 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 45 |
While the notion of chance has been central in discussions over the probabilistic nature of natural selection and genetic drift, its role in the production of variants on which populational sampling takes place has received much less philosophical attention. This article discusses the concept of chance in evolution in the light of contemporary work in evo-devo. We distinguish different levels at which randomness and chance can be defined in this context, and argue that recent research on variability and evolvability demands a causal understanding of variational probabilities under which development acquires a creative, rather than a constraining role in evolution. We then provide a propensity interpretation of variational probabilities that solves a conceptual confusion between causal properties, variational probabilities and extant variation present in the literature, and explore some metaphysical consequences that follow from our interpretation, specifically with regards to the nature of developmental types.
Biology · Context (archaeology) · Epistemology · Evolutionary biology · Evolvability · Exposition (narrative) · Extant taxon · Interpretation (philosophy) · Metaphysics · Natural selection · Randomness · Selection (genetic algorithm) · Variation (astronomy) · Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science · Evolution and Genetic Dynamics · Evolution and Science Education · Mathematics · Philosophy · Philosophy and History of Science
Perspective
The Propensity Interpretation of Fitness
Evolvability, Dispositions, and Intrinsicality
Discussion of “Four Case Studies on Chance in Evolution”
What Is Wrong with Typological Thinking
Interpretations of Probability in Evolutionary Theory
Two Concepts of Constraint
The Role of Randomness in Darwinian Evolution
Lineage Explanations
Varieties of Propensity
The Chances of Propensities
What Evolvability Really Is
Powers
| Unique citing works | 4 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,33 |
| Citation span | 2023 - 2026 (4) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |