The Metaphysics of Emergence pp 161-191 | Cite as
An Evolutionary Taxonomy of Types of Action and Life
Chapter
Abstract
One of the striking features of living creatures is that they perform actions. Even in the case of bacteria, we have to speak of what they are doing; they swim and tumble. More ‘advanced’ creatures perform many different types of action: they seek food, eat, mate, play, fight, run, swim, seek shelter, explore, migrate, etc. They are agents, who bring about changes in the world. Yet many philosophers in recent times have a problem understanding these obvious facts: how are genuine actions possible in a world in which physical laws obtain?
Keywords
Modern Human Minimal Sense Flexible Learner Efficient Causation Normative Notion
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© Richard Campbell 2015