Thinking about Biology [Paperback]

A short, readable 2003 textbook that is about the philosophical, social and political aspects of biology.Thinking About Biology is a philosophical commentary on biology, intended for biology students. It aims to make science students' studies more interesting, by offering an easy way into the philosophy of science, and into debates about the social and political implications of biology. In the past, books about these contexts tended to be academic science studies books, or popular science books. Thinking About Biology is unique in that it is a biology textbook, with clear links to the biology curriculum, but which adopts an explicitly philosophical approach.Thinking About Biology is a philosophical commentary on biology, intended for biology students. It aims to make science students' studies more interesting, by offering an easy way into the philosophy of science, and into debates about the social and political implications of biology. In the past, books about these contexts tended to be academic science studies books, or popular science books. Thinking About Biology is unique in that it is a biology textbook, with clear links to the biology curriculum, but which adopts an explicitly philosophical approach.Intended for biology students, this philosophical commentary on biology makes science students' studies more interesting by offering an easy way of studying the philosophy of science, as well as engaging in debates about the social and political implications of biology. It is a unique biology textbook because it adopts an explicitly philosophical approach.Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. Facts?; 2. Reductionism; 3. Evolution; 4. Biology and animals; 5. Controversies in Biology; 6. Making sense of genes; 7. Biology and politics; 8. Research ethics; Index. Webster provides a thought-provoking view of the traditional ideas about biologic science and then goes a step further in discussing the ethical and political consequences of biology.... this lively and controvlƒ"