A formalização e o significado de "teoria" nas ciências biológicas inexatas

terça-feira, agosto 08, 2017

Biological Theory

June 2013, Volume 7, Issue 4, pp 298–310

Formalization and the Meaning of “Theory” in the Inexact Biological Sciences

Authors Authors and affiliations

James Griesemer1

Email author

1.Department of PhilosophyUniversity of California, DavisDavisUSA

Thematic Issue Article: The Meaning of "Theory" in Biology

First Online: 18 September 2012

Citations

Source/Fonte: Adaptive Landscapes

Abstract

Exact sciences are described as sciences whose theories are formalized. These are contrasted to inexact sciences, whose theories are not formalized. Formalization is described as a broader category than mathematization, involving any form/content distinction allowing forms, e.g., as represented in theoretical models, to be studied independently of the empirical content of a subject-matter domain. Exactness is a practice depending on the use of theories to control subject-matter domains and to align theoretical with empirical models and not merely a state of a science. Inexact biological sciences tolerate a degree of “mismatch” between theoretical and empirical models and concepts. Three illustrations from biological sciences are discussed in which formalization is achieved by various means: Mendelism, Weismannism, and Darwinism. Frege’s idea of a “conceptual notation” is used to further characterize the notion of a form/content distinction.

Keywords

Darwin Exact and inexact science Formalization Mendel, model Theory Weismann

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