title: Dual Causality and the Autonomy of Biology.
abstract: Ernst Mayr's concept of dual causality in biology with the two forms of causes (proximate and ultimate) continues to provide an essential foundation for the philosophy of biology. They are equivalent to functional (=proximate) and evolutionary (=ultimate) causes with both required for full biological explanations. The natural sciences can be classified into nomological, historical nomological and historical dual causality, the last including only biology. Because evolutionary causality is unique to biology and must be included for all complete biological explanations, biology is autonomous from the physical sciences.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, 1212 Amsterdam Avenue, Mail Box 2428, New York, NY, 10027, USA. wb4@columbia.edu.
authors.forename: Walter J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Bock
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D001695:Biology; D015984:Causality; D006801:Humans
keywords: Autonomy of biology; Dual causality; Nomological, historical nomological, and historical dual causality sciences; Nomological-deductive and historical-narrative explanations; Proximate (functional) and ultimate (evolutionary) causes