Add to ORKGNatural kinds are often contrasted with other kinds of scientific kinds, especially functional kinds, because of a presumed categorical difference in explanatory value: natural kinds can ground explanations, while other kinds of kinds cannot. I argue against this view of natural kinds by examining a particular type of explanation – mechanistic explanations – and showing that functional kinds do the same work there as natural kinds are supposed to do in more standard scientific explanations. Breaking down the categorical distinction between natural kinds and other kinds of kinds, I argue, delivers two goods: It provides us with a view of natural kindhood that does justice to the epistemic roles of kinds in scientific explanations. And it all...
The functionalist approach to kinds has suffered recently due to its association with law-based appr...
This article uses the case study of ethnobiological classification to develop a positive and a negat...
Although some authors hold that natural kinds are necessarily relative to disciplinary domains, many...
Natural kinds are often contrasted with other kinds of scientific kinds, especially functional kinds...
Philosophers have long been interested in a series of interrelated questions about natural kinds. Wh...
Despite the traditional focus on metaphysical issues in discussions of natural kinds in biology, epi...
Most philosophical theories of natural kinds fail to reflect successful classificatory practice in s...
What is a natural kind? This old yet lasting philosophical question has recently received new compet...
The Homeostatic Property Cluster (HPC) account of natural kinds has become popular since it was prop...
Discussions over whether these natural kinds exist, what is the nature of their existence, and wheth...
It has recently been argued that the concept of natural kinds should be eliminated because it does n...
After the dawn of the traditional, essentialist view of natural kinds in contemporary philosophy (ex...
Theories of natural kinds can be seen to face a twofold task: First, they should provide an ontologi...
Despite the traditional focus on metaphysical issues in discussions of natural kinds in biology, epi...
Philosophers have long been interested in a series of interrelated questions about natural kinds. Wh...
The functionalist approach to kinds has suffered recently due to its association with law-based appr...
This article uses the case study of ethnobiological classification to develop a positive and a negat...
Although some authors hold that natural kinds are necessarily relative to disciplinary domains, many...
Natural kinds are often contrasted with other kinds of scientific kinds, especially functional kinds...
Philosophers have long been interested in a series of interrelated questions about natural kinds. Wh...
Despite the traditional focus on metaphysical issues in discussions of natural kinds in biology, epi...
Most philosophical theories of natural kinds fail to reflect successful classificatory practice in s...
What is a natural kind? This old yet lasting philosophical question has recently received new compet...
The Homeostatic Property Cluster (HPC) account of natural kinds has become popular since it was prop...
Discussions over whether these natural kinds exist, what is the nature of their existence, and wheth...
It has recently been argued that the concept of natural kinds should be eliminated because it does n...
After the dawn of the traditional, essentialist view of natural kinds in contemporary philosophy (ex...
Theories of natural kinds can be seen to face a twofold task: First, they should provide an ontologi...
Despite the traditional focus on metaphysical issues in discussions of natural kinds in biology, epi...
Philosophers have long been interested in a series of interrelated questions about natural kinds. Wh...
The functionalist approach to kinds has suffered recently due to its association with law-based appr...
This article uses the case study of ethnobiological classification to develop a positive and a negat...
Although some authors hold that natural kinds are necessarily relative to disciplinary domains, many...