Time of Nature and the Nature of Time: Philosophical Perspectives of Time in Natural Sciences (Boston Studies in the Philosophy and History of Science Book 326)

This volume addresses the question of time from the perspective of the time of nature. Its aim is to provide some insights about the nature of time on the basis of the different uses of the concept of time in natural sciences. Presenting a dialogue between philosophy and science, it features a collection of papers that investigate the representation, modeling and understanding of time as they appear in physics, biology, geology and paleontology. It asks questions such as: whether or not the notions of time in the various sciences are reducible to the same physical time, what status should be given to timescale differences, or what are the specific epistemic issues raised by past facts in natural sciences. The book first explores the experience of time and its relation to time in nature in a set of chapters that bring together what human experience and physics enable metaphysicians, logicians and scientists to say about time. Next, it studies time in physics, including some puzzling paradoxes about time raised by the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. The volume then goes on to examine the distinctive problems and conceptions of time in the life sciences. It explores the concept of deep time in paleontology and geology, time in the epistemology of evolutionary biology, and time in developmental biology. Each scientific discipline features a specific approach to time and uses distinctive methodologies for implementing time in its models. This volume seeks to define a common language to conceive of the distinct ways different scientific disciplines view time. In the process, it offers a new approach to the issue of time that will appeal to a wide range of readers: philosophers and historians of science, metaphysicians and natural scientists - be they scholars, advanced students or readers from an educated general audience. 1. Introduction: Time Between Metaphysics And Natural Sciences : From Physics To Biology / Christophe Bouton And Philippe Huneman -- Part I. The Experience Of Time And The Scientific Framing Of Time. 2. Passage, Flow, And The Logic Of Temporal Perspectives / Jenann Ismael ; 3. Time Of Logics And Time Of Physics / Carlo Proietti ; 4. Time Variable And Time Scales In Natural Systems And Their Modeling / Annick Lesne ; 5. On Time And The Varieties Of Science / David Braddon-mitchell And Kristie Miller -- Part Ii. Time Paradoxes In Physics. 6. Is The Future Already Present? : The Special Theory Of Relativity And The Block Universe View / Christophe Bouton ; 7. Dispelling The Quantum Spooks : A Clue That Einstein Missed? / Huw Price And Ken Wharton ; 8. On Time, Causation And Explanation In The Causally Symmetric Bohmian Model Of Quantum Mechanics / Joseph Berkovitz ; 9. The Representation Of Time In Discrete Mechanics / Vincent Ardourel And Anouk Barberousse -- Part Iii. Dealing With Deep Time (paleontology). 10. Paleontology : Outrunning Time / John Huss ; 11. The Biologist's Time And Deep Time : Essay On The Psychology Of The Paleobiologist / Armand J. De Ricqlès ; 12. The Making Of Paleontological Time / Pascal Tassy -- Part Iv. Time Of The Evolution (evolutionary And Developmental Biology). 13. Repetition And Reversibility In Evolution : Theoretical Population Genetics / Jean Gayon And Maël Montévil ; 14. Macroevolution And Microevolution : Issues Of Time Scale In Evolutionary Biology / Philippe Huneman ; 15. The Timing Of Development / Antonine Nicoglou. Christophe Bouton, Philippe Huneman, Editors. This Springer Imprint Is Published By Springer Nature--title Page Verso. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Introduction: Time Between Metaphysics and Natural Sciences: From Physics to Biology....Pages 1-20 Front Matter....Pages 21-21 Passage, Flow, and the Logic of Temporal Perspectives....Pages 23-38 Time of Logics and Time of Physics....Pages 39-53 Time Variable and Time Scales in Natural Systems and Their Modeling....Pages 55-66 On Time and the Varieties of Science....Pages 67-85 Front Matter....Pages 87-87 Is the Future already Present? The Special Theory of Relativity and the Block Universe View....Pages 89-121 Dispelling the Quantum Spooks: A Clue That Einstein Missed?....Pages 123-137 On Time, Causation and Explanation in the Causally Symmetric Bohmian Model of Quantum Mechanics....Pages 139-172 The Representation of Time in Discrete Mechanics....Pages 173-208 Front Matter....Pages 209-209 Paleontology: Outrunning Time....Pages 211-235 The Biologist’s Time and Deep Time: Essay on the Psychology of the Paleobiologist....Pages 237-251 The Making of Paleontological Time....Pages 253-271 Front Matter....Pages 273-273 Repetition and Reversibility in Evolution: Theoretical Population Genetics....Pages 275-314 Macroevolution and Microevolution: Issues of Time Scale in Evolutionary Biology....Pages 315-357 The Timing of Development....Pages 359-390 Back Matter....Pages 391-403