Conference Report: The Generalized Theory of Evolution, Duesseldorf Center for Logic and Philosophy of Science, January 31 - February 3, 2018

Abstract

According to Theodosius Dobzhansky’s famous dictum, “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution” [3]. On the other hand, philosophers like Ludwig Wittgenstein used to be rather skeptical concerning the relevance of evolutionary thinking to philosophy: “The Darwinian theory has no more to do with philosophy than has any other hypothesis of natural science” [6, 4.1122]. In the last decades, however, – in particular since Richard Dawkins coined the term ‘meme’ for the cultural counterpart of the gene [2] – the application of evolutionary principles has been successfully pursued in areas other than biology. The central principles are reproduction, variation, and selection [4]. Based on these principles, several models, methods, and theories of a wide range of phenomena have been developed – not confined to the realm of biology. More generally, philosophy of science, social sciences, psychology, economics, and many other areas show a growing interest in a generalized theory of evolution. Like in many disciplines and areas of research, the publication of an introductory textbook indicates a certain stage of maturity. Such a textbook has been provided (in German) by Gerhard Schurz [5]. An updated English version is currently in preparation. Being one of the first big conferences in this area, “The Generalized Theory of Evolution” brought together international researchers, scholars, and an interested audience to discuss the current state and trends of the interdisciplinary field of a generalized theory of evolution.