The Philosophy of Social Evolution - Hardcover

The Philosophy of Social Evolution - Hardcover

SKU: 9780198733058
Categories : Philosophy
In Stock
Regular price$135.25

by Jonathan Birch (Author)

From mitochondria to meerkats, the natural world is full of spectacular examples of social behaviour. In the early 1960s Bill Hamilton changed the way we think about how such behaviour evolves. He introduced three key innovations - now known as Hamilton's rule, kin selection, and inclusive fitness - which have been enormously influential, but which remain the subject of fierce controversy.

Hamilton's pioneering work kick-started a research program now known as social evolution theory. This is a book about the philosophical foundations and future prospects of that program. Part I, "Foundations", is a careful exposition and defence of Hamilton's ideas, with a few modifications along the way. In Part II, "Extensions", Jonathan Birch shows how these ideas can be applied to phenomena including cooperation in micro-organisms, cooperation among the cells of a multicellular organism, and culturally evolved cooperation in the earliest human societies. Birch argues that real progress can be made in understanding microbial evolution, evolutionary transitions, and human evolution by viewing them through the lens of social evolution theory, provided the theory is interpreted with care and adapted where necessary.

The Philosophy of Social Evolution places social evolution theory on a firm philosophical footing and sets out exciting new directions for further work.

Author Biography

Jonathan Birch, Associate Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science

Jonathan Birch is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method at the London School of Economics and Political Science, specializing in the philosophy of evolutionary biology. His research mainly concerns the evolution of social behaviour, with a particular focus on the work of W. D. Hamilton. He has published widely on various topics in the philosophy of the life sciences, in journals such as The American Naturalist, Biological Reviews, Philosophy of Science and The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
Number of Pages: 282
Dimensions: 0.9 x 8.6 x 5.4 IN
Illustrated: Yes
Publication Date: December 19, 2017
Quantity
Add to wishlist
Add to compare
Delivery time: 2-7 business days
Free 30 days return
Payment Options
Categories : Philosophy

Help

If you have any questions, you are always welcome to contact us. We'll get back to you as soon as possible, withing 24 hours on weekdays.

Customer service

All questions about your order, return and delivery must be sent to our customer service team by e-mail at yourstore@yourdomain.com

Sale & Press

If you are interested in selling our products, need more information about our brand or wish to make a collaboration, please contact us at press@yourdomain.com

by Jonathan Birch (Author)

From mitochondria to meerkats, the natural world is full of spectacular examples of social behaviour. In the early 1960s Bill Hamilton changed the way we think about how such behaviour evolves. He introduced three key innovations - now known as Hamilton's rule, kin selection, and inclusive fitness - which have been enormously influential, but which remain the subject of fierce controversy.

Hamilton's pioneering work kick-started a research program now known as social evolution theory. This is a book about the philosophical foundations and future prospects of that program. Part I, "Foundations", is a careful exposition and defence of Hamilton's ideas, with a few modifications along the way. In Part II, "Extensions", Jonathan Birch shows how these ideas can be applied to phenomena including cooperation in micro-organisms, cooperation among the cells of a multicellular organism, and culturally evolved cooperation in the earliest human societies. Birch argues that real progress can be made in understanding microbial evolution, evolutionary transitions, and human evolution by viewing them through the lens of social evolution theory, provided the theory is interpreted with care and adapted where necessary.

The Philosophy of Social Evolution places social evolution theory on a firm philosophical footing and sets out exciting new directions for further work.

Author Biography

Jonathan Birch, Associate Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science

Jonathan Birch is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method at the London School of Economics and Political Science, specializing in the philosophy of evolutionary biology. His research mainly concerns the evolution of social behaviour, with a particular focus on the work of W. D. Hamilton. He has published widely on various topics in the philosophy of the life sciences, in journals such as The American Naturalist, Biological Reviews, Philosophy of Science and The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science.
Number of Pages: 282
Dimensions: 0.9 x 8.6 x 5.4 IN
Illustrated: Yes
Publication Date: December 19, 2017

Shipping & Returns

Shipping
We deliver your parcel within 2–3 working days. As soon as your package has left our warehouse, you will receive a confirmation by email. This confirmation contains a tracking number that you can use to find out where your package is.

Returns
We offer free returns within 30 days. All you have to do is fill out the return slip that you received in your package and stick the prepaid label on the package.Please note that it can take 2 weeks for us to process your return. We will do our best to complete this process as soon as possible.

Shipping & Returns

Shipping
We deliver your parcel within 2–3 working days. As soon as your package has left our warehouse, you will receive a confirmation by email. This confirmation contains a tracking number that you can use to find out where your package is.

Returns
We offer free returns within 30 days. All you have to do is fill out the return slip that you received in your package and stick the prepaid label on the package.Please note that it can take 2 weeks for us to process your return. We will do our best to complete this process as soon as possible.

Warranty

We provide a 2-year limited warranty, from the date of purchase for all our products.

If you believe you have received a defective product, or are experiencing any problems with your product, please contact us.

This warranty strictly does not cover damages that arose from negligence, misuse, wear and tear, or not in accordance with product instructions (dropping the product, etc.).

Warranty

We provide a 2-year limited warranty, from the date of purchase for all our products.

If you believe you have received a defective product, or are experiencing any problems with your product, please contact us.

This warranty strictly does not cover damages that arose from negligence, misuse, wear and tear, or not in accordance with product instructions (dropping the product, etc.).

Secure Payment

Your payment information is processed securely. We do not store credit card details nor have access to your credit card information.

We accept payments with :
Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Paypal, Diners Club, Discover and more.

Secure Payment

Your payment information is processed securely. We do not store credit card details nor have access to your credit card information.

We accept payments with :
Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Paypal, Diners Club, Discover and more.

Related Products

You may also like