The Evolution of Reason: Logic as a Branch of BiologyThe formal systems of logic have ordinarily been regarded as independent of biology, but recent developments in evolutionary theory suggest that biology and logic may be intimately interrelated. In this book, William Cooper outlines a theory of rationality in which logical law emerges as an intrinsic aspect of evolutionary biology. This biological perspective on logic, though at present unorthodox, could change traditional ideas about the reasoning process. Cooper examines the connections between logic and evolutionary biology and illustrates how logical rules are derived directly from evolutionary principles, and therefore have no independent status of their own. Laws of decision theory, utility theory, induction, and deduction are reinterpreted as natural consequences of evolutionary processes. Cooper's connection of logical law to evolutionary theory ultimately results in a unified foundation for an evolutionary science of reason. It will be of interest to professionals and students of philosophy of science, logic, evolutionary theory, and cognitive science. |
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acts axiomatic axioms behavior belief biological branchtips choice function classical logic coin coin-flipping decision logic decision problem decision situation decision theory decision tree decision-theoretic deductive logic defined definition environment environmental event space evolution evolutionarily stable logic evolutionary biology evolutionary theory evolve expected number Figure formal gamble game theory ground-nesters growth rate humans individual inductive inference involved ladder language laws of logic life-history strategy theory life-history tree logical cognition mathematics metalanguage natural selection NEST nonclassical number of offspring objective optimal organism organismic P₁ population biology population members population models population process possible pragmatic predator predicts preference relation principles prior probabilities and utilities probability measure probability theory properties propositions radical reductionism radical reductionist rate of increase rational reasoning Reducibility Thesis reductionism reductionist round node rules rung Savage-rational semantical SHELL strategy-mixing structure subjective fitnesses subjective probability subpopulation systems of logic theorem tion tive trait tree diagram tree procedure valid