Review Of "The Evolutionary Dynamics Of Complex Systems: A Study In Biosocial Complexity" By C. Dyke

Document Type

Book Review

Publication Date

9-1-1988

Published In

Choice

Abstract

In the continuing debate on sociobiology this is a philosopher's attempt to create a framework for the joint study of biology and sociology. In the early chapters Dyke describes the problem and critiques previous treatments. The importance of structure in discourse is illustrated by a lengthy discussion of the card game, bridge. The application of principles derived in the early chapters is illustrated by a critique of a few papers on women's studies and on the growth of cities. The treatment is almost wholly from within the philosophy of science with minimal reference to studies in either biology or sociology. The vocabulary, the assumed familiarity with philosophical issues, and the writing style render the work difficult to read for both natural and social scientists even at advanced levels. There are no illustrations of any sort and the bibliography and index are minimal. The book will find little use in undergraduate libraries.

Comments

This work is freely available courtesy of Choice Reviews. The review has been reproduced in full in the abstract field.

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