Switch to: References

Add citations

You must login to add citations.
  1. The applicability of mathematics in computational systems biology and its experimental relations.Miles MacLeod - 2021 - European Journal for Philosophy of Science 11 (3):1-21.
    In 1966 Richard Levins argued that applications of mathematics to population biology faced various constraints which forced mathematical modelers to trade-off at least one of realism, precision, or generality in their approach. Much traditional mathematical modeling in biology has prioritized generality and precision in the place of realism through strategies of idealization and simplification. This has at times created tensions with experimental biologists. The past 20 years however has seen an explosion in mathematical modeling of biological systems with the rise (...)
    Download  
     
    Export citation  
     
    Bookmark  
  • Steel and bone: mesoscale modeling and middle-out strategies in physics and biology.Robert W. Batterman & Sara Green - 2020 - Synthese 199 (1-2):1159-1184.
    Mesoscale modeling is often considered merely as a practical strategy used when information on lower-scale details is lacking, or when there is a need to make models cognitively or computationally tractable. Without dismissing the importance of practical constraints for modeling choices, we argue that mesoscale models should not just be considered as abbreviations or placeholders for more “complete” models. Because many systems exhibit different behaviors at various spatial and temporal scales, bottom-up approaches are almost always doomed to fail. Mesoscale models (...)
    Download  
     
    Export citation  
     
    Bookmark   8 citations  
  • Philosophy of Cell Biology.William Bechtel & Andrew Bollhagen - 2019 - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
    Download  
     
    Export citation  
     
    Bookmark  
  • Mixed-Effects Modeling and Nonreductive Explanation.Wei Fang - unknown - Philosophy of Science 86 (5):882-894.
    This essay considers a mixed-effects modeling practice and its implications for the philosophical debate surrounding reductive explanation. Mixed-effects modeling is a species of the multilevel modeling practice, where a single model incorporates simultaneously two levels of explanatory variables to explain a phenomenon of interest. I argue that this practice makes the position of explanatory reductionism held by many philosophers untenable because it violates two central tenets of explanatory reductionism: single-level preference and lower-level obsession.
    Download  
     
    Export citation  
     
    Bookmark   1 citation  
  • Occam’s Razor in Molecular and Systems Biology.Fridolin Gross - 2019 - Philosophy of Science 86 (5):1134-1145.
    Occam’s razor refers to the idea that among competing explanations the simplest should be preferred. This principle has been understood and defended in different ways. Some systems biologists argue that traditional molecular biology is misguided because it relies on an unjustified application of Occam’s razor. I analyze which version of the principle is relevant in this context and ask whether the allegation stands up to scrutiny by looking at actual research. I defend the traditional approach by arguing that its use (...)
    Download  
     
    Export citation  
     
    Bookmark   1 citation