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Prediction in Selectionist Evolutionary Theory
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 2022
Abstract
Selectionist evolutionary theory has often been faulted for not making novel predictions that are surprising, risky, and correct. I argue that it in fact exhibits the theoretical virtue of predictive capacity in addition to two other virtues: explanatory unification and model fitting. Two case studies show the predictive capacity of selectionist evolutionary theory: parallel evolutionary change in E. coli and the origin of eukaryotic cells through endosymbiosis.
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- Research Article
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- Copyright © The Philosophy of Science Association
Footnotes
Many thanks to Fermín Fulda, Larry Laudan, and Elliot Sober for illuminating and detailed conversations that helped improve this article immensely. I am also grateful to John Beatty, Kirk Fitzhugh, Peter Godfrey-Smith, Deborah Mayo, Amir Najmi, Richard Otte, Sarah Richardson, and David Williams for helpful feedback.
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