Classifications and other ordering systems

Abstract

1. Introduction 2. Why ordering systems should be of interest to the philosopher? 3. The universality of diversity 4. Objectives of ordering systems 4.1. Sorting 4.2. Information storage and retrieval is a major objective of most ordering systems 4.3. Identification of an unknown item 4.4. Inferences about not yet studied properties 4.5. To serve as base line in comparative studies 5. Kinds of Ordering Systems 5.1 General considerations 5.2. Ordering of single entities 5.2.1. Assigning singular entities to a linear sequence (sequential listing) –type 1 5.2.1.1. Arbitrary sequence 5.2.1.2. Alphabetical listing 5.2.1.3. Chronological listing 5.2.1.4. Listing by rank or achievement 5.2.2. Ordering the chemical elements according to numerical properties of their atoms – type 2 6. Ordering by the clustering of entities 6.1. Ordering by a single criterion 6.2. Ordering by special similarity – type 3 6.2.1. Establishing groups by logical division (mostly dichotomy = ‘‘downward classification’’) 6.2.2. Special purpose ordering 6.3. Arrangement of entities into classes based on overall (comprehensive) similarity– type 4 6.4. Ordering by phylogeny or by similarity and phylogeny – types 5 and 6 7. Evolution versus phylogeny 7.1 Darwinian evolution 7.2. Haeckelian phylogeny 7.3. Hennigian phylogeny 8. Class and classification 8.1. Definition of class 8.2. Construction of classes (taxa) 8.3. General definition of classification 8.4. Biological classifications as hierarchies 8.5. Ranking 9. Similarity 9.1. General concept and use in classification 9.2. Meaning of similarity in biological classification 9.3. How to determine similarity? 9.4. Overall similarity 9.5. Sources of similarity in organisms 9.5.1. Evidently descended from the same ancestor 9.5.2. Parallelophyly 9.5.3. Reversal 9.5.4. Convergence 9.6. Significance of characters (weighing) 9.7. Numerical approaches 10. Ordering by using only the criterion of phylogeny – type 5 10.1. Hennigian cladification 10.2. Peculiarities of Hennigian terminology 10.2.1. Paraphyly 10.2.2. Monophyly 10.2.3. Relationship 10.2.4. Classification 10.2.5. Taxon 10.3. Cladistic analysis 10.4. Recognition of clades 11. Upward classification by two criteria, clustering by similarity and by common descent – type 6 11.1. Pre‐Darwinian classification 11.2. Post‐Darwinian classification 11.3. Genealogy alone does not give a classification 11.4. Is a biological classification a theory? 12. Ecological factors of evolution and classification 12.1. The origin of a new higher taxon (splitting or budding) 12.2. Impact of ecological shifts on classification 13. Phylogenetic or genealogical analysis 13.1. Use in biological classifications 13.2. Translating the phylogenetic analysis into an ordering system 13.2.1. Darwinian classification 13.2.2. Hennigian cladification 14. Graphic representations of ordering systems 14.1. Phenogram 14.2. Haeckelian‐Darwinian dendrogra...

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