Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Social Traps01:41

Social Traps

20.5K
Social traps are negative situations where people get caught in a direction or relationship that later proves to be unpleasant, with no easy way to back out of or avoid. The concept was orignally introduced by John Platt who applied psychology to Garrett Hardin's "Tragedy of the Commons", where in New England herd owners could let their cattle graze in the common ground. This situation seems like a good idea, but an individual could have an advantage. If they owned...
20.5K
The Tree of Life - Bacteria, Archaea, Eukaryotes02:40

The Tree of Life - Bacteria, Archaea, Eukaryotes

36.6K
The “tree of life” describes the evolution of life and the evolutionary relationships between organisms. The root of the tree is the common ancestor to all life on Earth. All other species radiate from this point, much like the branches of a tree. The numerous tips of these branches on the tree of life represent every living, or extant, species. Extinct species, which are species that no longer exist, can be found towards the center of the tree. Currently, these organisms, both...
36.6K
Structuralism01:26

Structuralism

3.6K
Structuralism, an early psychological theory developed by Wilhelm Wundt and his student Edward Bradford Titchener, sought to dissect the human mind into its most fundamental components. Wundt's groundbreaking work in his laboratory set the stage for Titchener to define structuralism's goal as cataloging the "atoms" of the mind—sensations, images, and feelings—akin to how chemists identify elements of matter.
Titchener's approach to structuralism was unique. He...
3.6K
Gestalt Psychology01:14

Gestalt Psychology

2.3K
Gestalt psychology, founded by Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, and Wolfgang Kohler, emphasizes the importance of understanding perception as an organized whole. Developed as a counter to Wilhelm Wundt's structuralism, this approach posits that our perceptions are more than just the sum of sensory parts; they are comprehensive wholes where the relationships between parts define the perception. The principle "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts" encapsulates this view,...
2.3K
Conditions on Early Earth02:06

Conditions on Early Earth

67.1K
Around 4 billion years ago, oceans began to condense on earth while volcanic eruptions released nitrogen, carbon dioxide, methane, ammonia, and hydrogen into the primordial atmosphere. However, organisms with the characteristics of life were not initially present on earth. Scientists have used experimentation to determine how organisms evolved that could grow, reproduce, and maintain an internal environment.
67.1K
Conditions on Early Earth02:06

Conditions on Early Earth

2.5K
2.5K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Managing surgical waiting lists through dynamic priority scoring.

Health care management science·2023
Same journal

Mental health, normativity, and local knowledge in global perspective.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
Same journal

Signals without teleology.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
Same journal

Issues of biopolitics of reproduction in post-war Greece.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
Same journal

Resurecting raciology? Genetic ethnology and pre-1945 anthropological race classification.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
Same journal

Race science in Czechoslovakia: Serving segregation in the name of the nation.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
Same journal

Transfer of Lamarckisms and emerging 'scientific' psychologies: 19th - early 20th centuries Britain and France.

Studies in history and philosophy of biological and biomedical sciences·2020
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 6, 2026

Establishment of Microbial Eukaryotic Enrichment Cultures from a Chemically Stratified Antarctic Lake and Assessment of Carbon Fixation Potential
14:38

Establishment of Microbial Eukaryotic Enrichment Cultures from a Chemically Stratified Antarctic Lake and Assessment of Carbon Fixation Potential

Published on: April 20, 2012

11.0K

Finding Ernst Mayr's Plato.

Jack Powers1

  • 1Department of Philosophy, Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455, USA.

Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences
|October 19, 2013
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Ernst Mayr's claim that Plato held an essentialist view of species is not supported by textual evidence. Re-examining Plato's dialogues suggests Platonic philosophy may not conflict with evolutionary biology.

Keywords:
Ernst MayrEssentialismLouis AgassizPlatoTeleologyTypological thinking

More Related Videos

Methods for Presenting Real-world Objects Under Controlled Laboratory Conditions
06:54

Methods for Presenting Real-world Objects Under Controlled Laboratory Conditions

Published on: June 21, 2019

5.4K
Behavioural Pharmacology in Classical Conditioning of the Proboscis Extension Response in Honeybees Apis mellifera
10:36

Behavioural Pharmacology in Classical Conditioning of the Proboscis Extension Response in Honeybees Apis mellifera

Published on: January 24, 2011

21.6K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 6, 2026

Establishment of Microbial Eukaryotic Enrichment Cultures from a Chemically Stratified Antarctic Lake and Assessment of Carbon Fixation Potential
14:38

Establishment of Microbial Eukaryotic Enrichment Cultures from a Chemically Stratified Antarctic Lake and Assessment of Carbon Fixation Potential

Published on: April 20, 2012

11.0K
Methods for Presenting Real-world Objects Under Controlled Laboratory Conditions
06:54

Methods for Presenting Real-world Objects Under Controlled Laboratory Conditions

Published on: June 21, 2019

5.4K
Behavioural Pharmacology in Classical Conditioning of the Proboscis Extension Response in Honeybees Apis mellifera
10:36

Behavioural Pharmacology in Classical Conditioning of the Proboscis Extension Response in Honeybees Apis mellifera

Published on: January 24, 2011

21.6K

Area of Science:

  • History and Philosophy of Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Platonic Philosophy

Background:

  • Ernst Mayr claimed evolutionary biology contradicts Platonic philosophy's essentialist species concept.
  • Mayr's attributions to Plato lack sufficient textual evidence.
  • Contemporary scholarship often accepts Mayr's interpretation.

Observation:

  • This paper critically examines the alleged inconsistencies between evolutionary and Platonic views of species.
  • It re-evaluates Platonic texts in light of recent scholarship.
  • The study questions the textual support for Plato holding an essentialist view of species.

Findings:

  • Claims of Platonic essentialism being inconsistent with evolutionary biology are inadequately supported.
  • The idea that Plato's teleological explanations conflict with Darwinian evolution also faces challenges.
  • Ernst Mayr's interpretation of Plato may reflect 19th-century anti-evolutionary thought more than Plato's actual dialogues.

Implications:

  • Scholars should be cautious when attributing biological views to Plato.
  • The term "Platonic essentialism" requires careful consideration in discussions of biological thought.
  • Reinterpreting Plato's philosophy in light of evolutionary biology needs rigorous textual analysis.