Is Biology a Provincial Science?

Abstract

My thesis is that biology is most plausibly regarded as a universal, as distinct from a provincial, science. First, I develop the general notion of a provincial science, formulate three criteria for applying the concept, and present brief examples illustrating their use. Second, I argue that a consideration of population genetics as a characteristic example of a basic biological theory strengthens the prior presumption that biology is not a provincial science. Finally, I examine two arguments to the effect that biology is a provincial science. The first concerns biology's exclusively terrestrial evidence base, the second the logical character of its laws. I introduce considerations that weaken the persuasiveness of the first argument and then show that the second one rests upon a false premise and so should be rejected.

The synthetic theory of evolution: general problems and the German contribution to the synthesis

“…What is the status of macroevolution (given the fact that there are no specific macroevolutionary factors or laws? (See Williams 1970a, b, 1981Munson 1975: Caplan 1978Olding 1978;Ayala 1982Ayala , 1983Horan 1994;Ariew 1998). c) The attempt to axiomatize the Theory of Evolution (Williams 1970; for discussion see Ruse 1971Ruse , 1973) has lead to no satisfactory results.…”