文档介绍：That mystery of mysteries,
the replacement of extinct species by others.
John F. W. Herschel, astronomer-philosopher,
in a letter to Charles Lyell, geologist, February 20, 1836
Exam Copy
Copyright © 1999 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
Exam Copy
Copyright © 1999 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
OF
M YSTERY ≥
M YSTERIES
Is Evolution a Social Construction?
MICHAEL RUSE
HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
Exam1999 Copy
Copyright © 1999 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
Copyright © 1999 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
All rights reserved
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ruse, Michael.
Mystery of mysteries : is evolution a social construction? /
Michael Ruse.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 0-674-46706-X (alk. paper)
1. Evolution (Biology)—Philosophy. 2. Science—Philosophy.
3. Biologists. 4. Scientists. I. Title.
1999
—DC21 98-41969
Exam Copy
Copyright © 1999 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
For
John Beatty
Peter Sloep
Paul Thompson
Exam Copy
Copyright © 1999 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
Preface
This is a book about the nature of science using evolutionary theory as
a case study. It follows on the heels of another book written by me,
Monad to Man: The Concept of Progress in Evolutionary Biology, also
published by Harvard University Press—a book which contains similar
themes. The difference is that whereas in that book I was using philoso-
phy to try to understand biology, in this book I am using biology to try
to understand philosophy. I should say also that Monad to Man was
directed at a specialized audience: it was long, with detailed references.
This book is intended more for a general audience. I have tried not to
overburden the reader with background research, a temptati