205:. to study philosophy of science and received his PhD in 1971. His thesis consisted of a philosophical analysis of biological function. He published three papers from his dissertation: "Teleology and the Logical Structure of Function Statements", "Complexity and Organization", and "Reductionism, levels of organization, and the mind-body problem". From July 1969 to December 1970, he was a postdoctoral fellow in population biology with
287:(e.g., believing that a particular apple exists because we can see it, feel it, smell it, taste it, and hear it crunch when we eat it) is fundamental for accessing what exists in the world. The more we can detect things in multiple ways, the more we are inclined to believe they exist. Closely connected to robustness are the
325:
are all important influences on
Wimsatt's work. Some of the most important commentators on Wimsatt's writings are his students, many of whom are now working as philosophers of science and scientists, e.g. Marshall Abrams, Douglas Allchin, Irene Appelbaum,
145:(born May 27, 1941) is professor emeritus in the Department of Philosophy, the Committee on Conceptual and Historical Studies of Science (previously Conceptual Foundations of Science), and the Committee on Evolutionary Biology at the
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Wimsatt's philosophical position starts with two themes: we are limited beings and the world we try to understand is complex. The problem then is how to build a philosophical world view based on these two themes. For
Wimsatt,
291:, which we use to think about the world and are foundational to his epistemology. They are rules of thumb, which can be wrong or biased but tend to work when applied to what is robust in the world. For Wimsatt, questions of
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award for outstanding contributions to
Philosophy of Biology and support of students in the profession by the International Society for History Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology.
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in Vienna, Austria, Winton
University Professor at the University of Minnesota, and a fellow at the Franke Humanities Institute in Chicago. He is on the scientific advisory board of the
149:. He is currently a Winton Professor of the Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesota and Residential Fellow of the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science. He specializes in the
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Bechtel, William; Werner
Callebaut; James R. Griesemer; Jeffrey C. Schank (2006). "Bill Wimsatt on Multiple Ways of Getting at the Complexity of Nature".
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In 2007, he was named the Peter H. Ritzma
Professor in Philosophy and Evolutionary Biology. He has been a visiting Distinguished Professor at
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who was a
Cornell University professor specializing in bats. He was married to Barbara Horberg on June 13, 1971. He has one son,
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354:(1980). "Reductionistic Research Strategies and their Biases in the Units of Selection Controversy." In
368:(1986). "Developmental Constraints, Generative Entrenchment, and the Innate-Acquired Distinction." In
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Wimsatt, William (May 1972). "Teleology and the
Logical Structure of Function Statements".
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Modern science and the new teleology: I - the conceptual foundations of functional analysis
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756:"Re-Engineering Philosophy for Limited Beings: Piecewise Approximations to Reality"
375:(1997). "Functional Organization, Functional Analogy, and Functional Inference."
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PSA: Proceedings of the
Biennial Meeting of the Philosophy of Science Association
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Re-Engineering
Philosophy for Limited Beings: Piecewise Approximations to Reality
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Re-Engineering Philosophy for Limited Beings: Piecewise Approximations to Reality
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347:(1972). "Teleology and the Logical Structure of Function Statements."
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that we have evolved multiple ways of detecting things in the world.
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Wimsatt, as an undergraduate, began studying engineering physics at
642:
643:"Reductionism, Levels of Organization, and the Mind-Body Problem"
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Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research
213:, and was subsequently hired as an assistant professor of
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Wimsatt, William (1972). "Complexity and Organization".
295:(i.e., what exists) are not separable from questions of
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Kwiecinski, Gary G.; Mark A. Cukierski (April 1987).
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382:(1999). "Genes, Memes, and Cultural Heredity."
217:in 1971 and promoted to full professor in 1981.
788:"Video on philosophy and philosophy of biology"
697:"William A. Wimsatt: Dedication and biography"
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199:Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
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569:Studies in History and Philosophy of Science
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393:. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
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499:. Harvard University Press. pp.
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193:in 1965. Wimsatt then went to the
827:University of Minnesota, Philosophy
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872:20th-century American philosophers
867:21st-century American philosophers
649:. Plenum Press. pp. 205–267.
370:Integrating Scientific Disciplines
356:Scientific Discovery: Case Studies
226:Washington University in St. Louis
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832:University of Chicago, Philosophy
334:, Jeffry Ramsey, Sahotra Sarkar,
773:"Interview with William Wimsatt"
862:University of Minnesota faculty
852:University of Pittsburgh alumni
456:"University of Chicago profile"
266:Wimsatt is the son of the late
239:Among his former students are
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857:University of Chicago faculty
254:Wimsatt was awarded the 2013
589:10.1016/0039-3681(72)90014-3
539:. John Templeton Foundation.
758:. University of Notre Dame.
701:American Journal of Anatomy
655:10.1007/978-1-4684-2196-5_9
647:Consciousness and the Brain
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738:""short" Curriculum Vita"
641:Wimsatt, William (1976).
550:Wimsatt, William (1971).
491:Wimsatt, William (2007).
434:10.1162/biot.2006.1.2.213
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195:University of Pittsburgh
69:University of Pittsburgh
887:Evolutionary biologists
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877:Philosophers of science
377:Evolution and Cognition
131:University of Minnesota
84:Generative entrenchment
714:10.1002/aja.1001780402
384:Biology and Philosophy
606:. 1971, 1972: 67–85.
342:Selected publications
272:William Upski Wimsatt
222:Ohio State University
211:University of Chicago
151:philosophy of biology
147:University of Chicago
127:University of Chicago
113:Philosophy of biology
109:Philosophy of science
338:, and Marty Sereno.
181:Education and career
117:Evolutionary biology
581:1972SHPSA...3....1.
167:scientific modeling
786:Wimsatt, William.
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535:Wimsatt, William.
476:Wimsatt, William.
332:James R. Griesemer
330:, Stuart Glennan,
323:Donald T. Campbell
278:Philosophical work
268:William A. Wimsatt
245:James R. Griesemer
203:Mellon Fellowships
187:Cornell University
175:cultural evolution
143:William C. Wimsatt
39:William C. Wimsatt
20:William C. Wimsatt
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892:1941 births
575:(1): 1–80.
537:"biography"
478:"Professor"
386:14: 279-310
57:Nationality
841:Categories
398:References
289:heuristics
285:robustness
256:David Hull
215:Philosophy
159:heuristics
91:Complexity
81:Heuristics
78:Robustness
45:1941-05-27
822:Interview
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389:(2007).
301:evolution
163:emergence
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379:3: 2-32.
351:3: 1-80.
262:Personal
171:heredity
60:American
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461:28 July
293:realism
209:at the
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659:ISBN
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
