Darwin Machines and the Nature of Knowledge

by Henry Plotkin (Author)

4 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0674192812

ISBN-10: 0674192818

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Bringing together evolutionary biology, psychology, and philosophy, Henry Plotkin presents a new science of knowledge that traces an unbreakable link between instinct and our ability to know. Since our ability to know our world depends primarily on what we call intelligence, intelligence must be understood as an extension of instinct. The capacity for knowledge is deeply rooted in our biology and, in a special sense, is shared by all living things.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

Plotkin is a psychologist and his book places most emphasis on learning or the acquisition of knowledge and the cultural transmission of that knowledge. It is an extended essay on 'evolutionary epistemology', a phrase coined by D. T. Campbell and rightly seen by Plotkin as a barrier to understanding. Indeed, one of this book's great virtues is that Plotkin writes incomparably more clearly than most others who have ventured into these fields. His exposition, even of complex issues, is beautifully lucid, his arguments well thought through and his illustrations apt. (Nicholas Mackintosh Nature)

Plotkin makes evolutionary epistemology accessible to nonspecialists, developing a model in which sense-based knowledge anchors mind-based knowledge, coupling more tightly to individual intelligence than to the 'knowledge' constructs of cultures. Plotkin offers an extremely readable account and defense of evolutionary epistemology, a prominent, if controversial, position in contemporary philosophy of science. (Steven L. Goldman Science, Technology & Society)

Plotkin ties together philosophy, evolutionary biology, and psychology to provide a new examination of the science of knowledge. The nature of learning and intelligence are seen as the extension of instincts that are deeply rooted in our biology...Plotkin is excellent at describing difficult and convoluted issues. (Choice)

An outstanding example of a bold and thought-provoking struggle for a unified viewpoint on the nature of knowledge. Plotkin's intention is not just to show connections between various accounts of knowledge from evolutionary biologists, psychologists, and philosophers--he is going for more. He attempts to develop and unified point of view, based on Darwin and twentieth-century evolutionary epistemology. This book is extremely lucid, clear, and well-written. (Gerd Gigerenzer, University of Chicago)

In his Darwin Machines and the Nature of Knowledge, Plotkin does for evolutionary epistemology what Richard Dawkins did for gene selectionism in The Selfish Gene. As in the case of gene selectionist versions of evolutionary theory, most of the work in evolutionary epistemology is highly esoteric and extremely hard to follow. Plotkin decided that it was time to summarize the advances in ways that more general readers can comprehend and appreciate. He has simplified this large literature without distorting it. I read the book with enjoyment. (David Hull, Northwestern University)

From the Back Cover

Learn and survive. Behind this simple equation lies a revolution in the study of knowledge, which has left the halls of philosophy for the labs of science. This book offers a cogent account of what such a move does to our understanding of the nature of learning, rationality, and intelligence. Bringing together evolutionary biology, psychology, and philosophy, Henry Plotkin presents a new science of knowledge, one that traces an unbreakable link between instinct and our ability to know. Contrary to the modern liberal idea that knowledge is something derived from experience, this science shows us that what we know is what our nature allows us to know, what our instincts tell us we must know. Since our ability to know our world depends primarily on what we call intelligence, intelligence must be understood as an extension of instinct. Drawing on contemporary evolutionary theory, especially notions of hierarchical structure and universal Darwinism, Plotkin tells us that the capacity for knowledge, which is what makes us human, is deeply rooted in our biology and, in a special sense, is shared by all living things. This leads to a discussion of animal and human intelligence as well as an appraisal of what an instinct-based capacity for knowledge might mean to our understanding of language, reasoning, emotion, and culture. The result is nothing less than a three-dimensional theory of our nature, in which all knowledge is adaptation and all adaptation is a specific form of knowledge.

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Product details

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Harvard University Press (April 25, 1997)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0674192818
ISBN-13: 978-0674192812
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,019,126 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #213 in Books > Science & Math > Physics > Electromagnetism > Magnetism
- #861 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Philosophy > Epistemology
- #1961 in Books > Textbooks > Social Sciences > Psychology > Cognitive Psychology

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What do we know and when did we know it?

November 19, 2007

Format: Paperback

Evolution is the most comprehensive and successful theory of existence yet conceived, and in this volume Henry Plotkin extends its scope to include human knowledge. Further, he helps the reader understand that all adaptation is knowledge, and that human knowledge is merely a special case of that larger truth. At first blush the interchangeability of the concepts of adaptation and knowledge seems strange. How can it be that the webbing of a duck or platypus foot; migration of Monarch butterflies; the modern vertebrate eye; coral's combination of free-swimming larvae and accretive communal adulthood; handedness; pea pod length; et. al., correlate to our brains' capacity to solve quadratic equations or fashion flint tools? The answer lies in the twin attributes of all adaptations. In the words of the author "One was their goal- or end-directed nature. Each and every adaptation is 'for' something." And again, "[this] leads directly to the second characteristic of adaptations. This is their relational quality. Every adaptation comprises organization of an organism relative to some feature of environmental order." This is to say that a duck's webbed feet are an adaptation for swimming faster, and flexible webbing enhances swimming speed because of the density of water, permitting folding and low-drag on the forward stroke followed by spreading and high drag on the thrust stroke. Knowledge, on close inspection, is no different, comprised of the same two parts as all other adaptations: a goal and a relation to the environment. What Plotkin's sweeping investigation of this correlation achieves is to bring our thinking processes fulling into the fold of evolutionary theory. More than ever we can see that humans are not different from the rest of earth life in any meaningful way: we are a special case as are all species, with strengths and weaknesses that make us what we are. Our solutions are not the best possible, just the best available to us now. Or, as Plotkin puts it, "Knowledge may never be absolute and certain, but it is always true enough to be workable." This volume is not an easy read, but the breadth of the author's insight is worth the work. Along the way Plotkin deepened my understanding of the visceral opposition to evolutionary theory on the part of religious zealots: there is truly no room for God in an evolving universe and human knowledge has long been the linch-pin of divine interventionism. Opposable thumbs, hairless skin, Ten Commandments and all, are adaptations to environmental conditions which change over time. As do we.

2 people found this helpful3 people found this helpful

The first clear exposition on Universal Darwinism

September 29, 2013

Format: Paperback

Here Plotkin expands on the thesis that all knowledge is the result of Darwinian forces. He adapts the term 'Universal Darwinism' to cover his position, the first proper usage of the term in its modern context. Plotkin writes with wisdom and authority on the topic, although at the time it was a pretty new and controversial subject. The book has a pretty good section on memes and cultural evolution towards the end. Plotkin has returned repeatedly to this topic, but this was his first and most significant contribution. The book is a "must-read" for those interested in the topic.

One person found this helpful2 people found this helpful

knowledge from an evolutionary point of view

May 28, 2006

Format: Paperback

In this remarkable book, Plotkin attempts to unify philosophical and evolutionary approaches to the concept of `knowledge'. He examines the various ways one can think about this concept and concludes that there is more to it than only philosophical epistemology. That's why the author tries to study knowledge in a broader perspective. In a well written, erudite manner, he guides the reader through philosophy, psychology and evolutionary biology.

After a short introduction, Plotkin devotes a chapter to sketching the theory of evolution and its natural outcome: adaptation. He continues with the statement that the concepts of evolutionary theory have far broader applicability. They can be used to explain aspects of how our immune system works, the organisation of our brain, or the way science works. Plotkin introduces a model that can be used to study all these different subjects from the same evolutionary point of view. After these chapters we are well prepared to follow Plotkin in the application of his theoretical framework to the origin of knowledge.

The fourth chapter contains the core of Plotkin's argumentation. Here he states that knowledge (also behavioural knowledge) and adaptation are closely related concepts. In fact, he maintains that all adaptations can be viewed as a form of knowledge, and knowledge as an adaptation. With this in mind he examines different kinds of behaviour. He discusses behaviour without thought, also known as instincts. Instincts are adaptations, evolved to cope with predictable changes of the environment. However, when the environment changes in an unpredictable manner, organisms need more than instincts. According to Plotkin, our intelligence is an adaptation which makes it possible to handle such unpredictable changes.

Plotkin believes in the modularity of the mind. This theory states that the brain contains certain modules involved in processing modular-specific information. The most famous example is Chomsky's language module. The knowledge obtained through these modules has epistemic boundaries. Plotkin finds evidence for this point of view when he examines our ability to reason logically, the development of language, emotions and culture. He states that because of these boundaries, our intelligence is also restricted. We cannot learn anything we want. In our struggle to cope with the unpredictable changes in our environment, we are condemned to make failures.

In the last chapter we turn to philosophy. Hume stated that induction can never lead to reliable knowledge. Plotkin agrees and confines that evolutionary epistemology cannot say anything about this reliability problem. Kant maintained that we can only know things in the way they are modulated by the mind, hence we cannot obtain true knowledge. Here Plotkin does not agree. Evolution provides the evidence for the fact that the surviving organisms `got it right' most of the time. So we are capable of generating knowledge that is reliable (enough). In fact we are still getting better, we can even see a glimpse of the future nowadays.

I think this is a great book for everyone interested in the combination evolutionary biology and philosophy. It isn't an easy read, but the author developed some really great ideas, worth the effort. This doesn't say one has to agree with the author on all points. I found it very hard to deal with the adaptation=knowledge idea and his argumentation wasn't always clear to me. I'm also not as modularity minded as Plotkin is and I think he relies heavily on this principle.

In spite of my doubts, I really enjoyed reading this book. For me it was a nice acquaintance with epistemology from a surprising perspective.

8 people found this helpful9 people found this helpful

A customer

Our evolutionary roots control the way we learn.

July 30, 1996

Format: Hardcover

Meaty and intellectual exploration of the evolutionary basis of knowledge and learning, a subject known as evolutionary epistemology. We have built-in filters and mechanisms that control our learning, resulting in quirky but predictable oddities in our perceptions and abilities.

--Richard Brodie, author, Virus of the Mind: The New Science of the Mem

8 people found this helpful9 people found this helpful

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