Editorial Reviews
Review
This is a period when new general hypotheses in evolutionary theory are flourishing, and when the falsification ax isn't swinging quite as freely as it does in periods when a field is settling down to a new orthodoxy. In this connection, proponents of a hierarchical theory must prove their mettle by bringing their perspectives to bear on problems about social evolution. I can think of no better people than Marjorie Grene and Niles Eldredge to do this.
Book Description
-- David Depew, Professor of Philosophy, California State University, Fullerton
AThink of the word "evolution": the name Darwin and the term "natural selection" come to mind. But any powerful general theory of evolution must account for social evolution, both human and nonhuman, and contemporary Darwinism has not persuasively made such an accounting. In Interactions: The Biological Context of Social Systems, Niles Eldredge and Marjorie Grene argue effectively and coherently against the reductionist tendencies in modern Darwinism, which they call ultra-Darwinism, also known as genic reduction.
This book explores the biological underpinnings of social systems from invertebrates to mammals, particularly humans. These social systems, the authors argue, represent fusions between the economic and reproductive interests of organisms. Their theory moves away from the more prominent emphasis on reproductive biology at the core of sociobiology to reinstate the importance of economics in social organizations of all types.
Interactions
Interactions,Marjorie Grene,Niles Eldredge,Columbia University Press,023107946X,Biology,Evolution (Biology),Life Sciences - Evolution,Organic Evolution,Science,Science/Mathematics,Social aspects,Social systems,Sociobiology,Evolution,Science / Evolution
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