Philosophy of science in an age of Neo-Darwinian apologetics

Steve Fuller

Resumen


This paper is a reflection on the shift in the role of philosophers vis-à-vis scientists from ‘philosophers of science’ to ‘philosophers for science’, what I have called the ‘underlabourer syndrome’. One consequence of this syndrome in the case of Neo-Darwinism is that the theory has become rife with internal interpretive tensions, which philosophers have tolerated by loosening their own criteria for a good scientific theory. This shift in philosophical standards probably reflects the strong cultural standing of Neo-Darwinism. Intelligent design theory, in its quest to achieve intellectual respectability as an opponent to Neo-Darwinism, has somewhat mimicked its opponent by adopting a conception of ‘intelligent designer’ just as open as that of the Neo-Darwinist conception of ‘evolution’. I argue that neither strategy works well, either epistemologically or politically.

Key words. Neo-Darwinian synthesis, Neo-Darwinian apologetics, intelligent design, Evolution, underlabourer, philosophy of science, theology, theodicy, Creationism, Elliott Sober.


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Referencias


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