Between Kin Selection and Cultural Relativism: Cultural Evolution and the Origin of Inequality

One way to interpret the significance of the "Kuhnian revolution" in the history and philosophy of science is as implying that successful scientific theories are complex cultural adaptations. Like the complex cultural practices studied by anthropologists in traditional societies, scientific paradigms are the result of cultural evolution and come as a package that functions well for guiding the practice of a scientific community, but that cannot be taken apart into discrete truth claims that are tested directly against nature. A complex cultural adaptation involves both the invention of a new technique or practice that is transmitted with high fidelity by cultural means and its modification and augmentation to fit...