Resonances: Neurobiology, Evolution and Theology

Mühling, Markus

doi:10.13109/9783666570360

Cited by 7 publications

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“…Maybe we should rather see ourselves as “relatively ultimate” niche constructors, that is, as relative to the history of evolution as currently known to us (cf. also Mühling , 163). In fact, to call ourselves ultimate niche constructors might also deny the possibility that something similar might actually still take place at other unknown places in our universe.…”

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Odling‐Smee, Laland, and Feldman , 33). For Markus Mühling (, 147) this kind of directedness which niche construction adds to the process of evolution is a nonteleological one, but it is a kind of information related to purpose and “semantic information,” and by “semantic information” these biologists mean information that relates to the fitness of specific organisms, their requirements in their local environments, and so forth. One might even say that the niche‐constructing activities of organisms could be oriented toward targeted future outcomes of organisms–environment interactions on the basis of at least rudimentary and semantically informed search plans (cf.…”

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, in this limited and, in most species, entirely noncognitive sense, niche construction must be preparative or predictive in character (Odling‐Smee et al. , as quoted in Mühling , 147).…”

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…; also cf. Mühling , 162). Mühling is quick to say, however, that we should always remember it is not the organisms themselves that are responsible for the construction of niches, but rather the whole system, including both organisms and environment.…”

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Can We Still Talk About “Truth” and “Progress” in Interdisciplinary Thinking Today?

Huyssteen¹

2017

Zygon

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On a cultural level, and for Christian theology as part of a long tradition in the evolution of religion, evolutionary epistemology “sets the stage,” as it were, for understanding the deep evolutionary impact of our ancestral history on the evolution of culture, and eventually on the evolution of disciplinary and interdisciplinary reflection. In the process of the evolution of human knowledge, our interpreted experiences and expectations of the world (and of the ultimate questions we humans typically pose to the world) have a central role to play. What evolutionary epistemology also shows us is that we humans can indeed take on cognitive goals and ideals that cannot be explained or justified in terms of survival‐promotion or reproductive advantage only. Therefore, once the capacities for rational knowledge, moral sensibility, aesthetic appreciation of beauty, and the propensity for religious belief have emerged in our biological history, they cannot be explained only in biological/evolutionary terms. Finally, in this way a door is opened for seeing problem solving as a central activity of our research traditions. As philosophers of science have argued, one of the most important shared rational resources between even widely divergent disciplines is problem solving as the most central and defining activity of all research traditions. As will become clear, the very diverse reasoning strategies of theology and the sciences clearly overlap in their shared quests for intelligible problem solving, including problem solving on an empirical, experiential, and conceptual level.

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Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Continuity and Change In Research Traditions: Niche Construcmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Can We Still Talk About “Truth” and “Progress” in Interdisciplinary Thinking Today?

Huyssteen¹

2017

Zygon

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“…'Whenever science becomes scientism, science not only ceases to be science and changes into religion, but becomes an intolerant danger for liberal societies.' 6 The problem that warrants urgent attention is that genuine science too frequently comes packaged in the wrapper of scientism. We must find a way to discard the wrapper in order to enjoy the treasure inside.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The temptation of scientism

Peters

2020

Theology

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This article distinguishes between science and scientism, recommending that the theologian take on board the former but jettison the latter. Scientism adds an ‘ism’ to science, turning its materialistic method into an ideology, a world view without spirit and without the divine. Science itself should be lauded by the theologian, because it expands both knowledge and appreciation of God’s creation.

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Religion and Science in Germany

Evers¹

2015

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During the last fifty years, the dialogue between science and religion in Germany has gained momentum. This essay briefly describes the academic setting in Germany with denominational theology at state universities and explains the development of secularization in reunified Germany. Twenty‐five years after reunification, East Germany is one of the most secular societies in the world, and religion is seen as a strange relic. This poses challenges to the interaction between science and religion in both parts of Germany. The essay then presents important institutions and contributors to the interaction between science and religion in Germany over the past fifty years, emphasizing the importance of private institutes at the intersection of the academy with society, churches, and ethical challenges.

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Resonances: Neurobiology, Evolution and Theology

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

Can We Still Talk About “Truth” and “Progress” in Interdisciplinary Thinking Today?

Can We Still Talk About “Truth” and “Progress” in Interdisciplinary Thinking Today?

The temptation of scientism

Religion and Science in Germany

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