Philosophies of the Sciences

A collection of essays discussing a wide range of sciences and the central philosophical issues associated with them, presenting the sciences collectively to encourage a greater understanding of their associative theoretical foundations, as well as their relationships to each other. Offers a new and unique approach to studying and comparing the philosophies of a variety of scientific disciplines Explores a wide variety of individual sciences, including mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, psychology, sociology and economics The essays are written by leading scholars in a highly accessible style for the student audience Complements more traditional studies of philosophy of science

Notes on Contributors vii List of Figures xii Unit 1: Introduction 1 1 Philosophies of the Sciences 3 Fritz Allhoff 2 Philosophy of Science 9 Richard DeWitt Unit 2: Philosophy of the Exact Sciences 39 3 Philosophy of Logic 41 Otávio Bueno 4 Philosophy of Mathematics 68 Otávio Bueno 5 Philosophy of Probability 92 Aidan Lyon Unit 3: Philosophy of the Natural Sciences 127 6 Philosophy of Physics 129 Richard DeWitt 7 Philosophy of Chemistry 163 Joachim Schummer 8 Philosophy of Biology 184 Matthew H. Haber, Andrew Hamilton, Samir Okasha, and Jay Odenbaugh 9 Philosophy of Earth Science 213 Maarten G. Kleinhans, Chris J.J. Buskes, and Henk W. de Regt Unit 4: Philosophy of the Behavioral and Social Sciences 237 10 Philosophy of the Cognitive Sciences 239 William Bechtel and Mitchell Herschbach 11 Philosophy of Psychology 262 Edouard Machery 12 Philosophy of Sociology 293 Daniel Little 13 Philosophy of Economics 324 Daniel M. Hausman Index 356