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Updated: Jul 2, 2026
04:52
Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations
Published on: February 3, 2023
Systemic darwinism.
1Philosophy Department, University of California, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA. rgwinther@gmail.com
Summary
Systemic Darwinism integrates evolutionary theory by focusing on complex biological systems. This approach reconciles historical debates and unifies diverse biological theories for a deeper understanding.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Systems biology
- Philosophy of biology
Background:
- Darwin's theory of descent with modification established a conceptual framework for biology.
- 20th-century debates created perceived dichotomies in evolutionary concepts (e.g., law vs. narrative, organismic vs. hierarchical selection, variation vs. essentialism).
- Contemporary research increasingly focuses on complex biological systems across multiple scales.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the multidimensional conceptual space of Darwin's theory.
- To re-examine and potentially resolve historical dichotomies in evolutionary thought.
- To introduce and elaborate on the framework of Systemic Darwinism.
Main Methods:
- Conceptual analysis of Darwin's theory across three dimensions: explanatory pattern, levels of selection, and degree of difference.
- Examination of 21st-century systems-focused research (genomic, cellular, organismic, ecological).
- Integration of insights from Systems Theory, Systems Biology, and Hierarchy Theory.
Main Results:
- Systemic Darwinism, based on a compositional paradigm, focuses on complex systems and their hierarchical networks.
- It offers a potential reintegration of the dimensions of Darwin's original conceptual space.
- This framework can coordinate and integrate various mathematical biological theories (e.g., self-organization, cladistics, evolutionary genetics).
Conclusions:
- Systemic Darwinism provides a unified approach to biological ontology by investigating systems.
- It requires interdisciplinary collaboration and articulation from multiple perspectives.
- This framework promises to advance bioengineering and deepen the understanding of biological reality.
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