Abstract
The paper presents an example of unified theory bearing interest from both a historical and systematic point of view. The example is chosen from evolutionary population genetics (neo-Darwinian synthetic theory). It exhibits various aspects of theoretical change in science that have been shown in Part I (Geiger, 1988) to be characteristic of syntheses of theories.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bowler, P. J.: 1984, Evolution: The History of an Idea, University of California Press, Berkeley.
Edwards, A. W. F.: 1977, Foundations of Mathematical Genetics, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Ewens, W. J.: 1979, Mathematical Population Genetics, Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Geiger, G.: 1986, Der Begriff der einheitlichen Theorie—Eine modelltheoretische Untersuchung zur Struktur und Evolution hierarchischer Systems, Habilitationsschrift, Technische Universität München.
Geiger, G.: 1988, ‘Synthesis of Theories through Parametrisation of Laws. I. Basic Concepts’, this issue, pp. 343–355.
Huxley, J.: 1942, Evolution: The Modern Synthesis, Allen and Unwin, London.
Kyburg, H. E.: 1968, Philosophy of Science: A Formal Approach, Macmillan, New York.
Laudan, L., A. Donovan, R.Laudan, P.Barker, H.Brown, J.Leplin, P. Thagard, and S.Wykstra: 1986, ‘Scientific Change: Philosophical Models and Historical Research’, Synthese 69, 141–223.
Roughgarden, J.: 1979, Theory of Population Genetics and Evolutionary Ecology: An Introduction, Macmillan, New York.
Wallace, B.: 1984, Basic Population Genetics, Columbia University Press, New York.
Woodger, J. H.: 1959, ‘Studies in the Foundations of Genetics’ in L.Henkin, P.Suppes, and A. Tarski (eds.), The Axiomatic Method, North-Holland, Amsterdam, pp. 408–28.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Geiger, G. Synthesis of theories through parametrisation of laws. Erkenntnis 29, 357–368 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00183070
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00183070