Todd Grantham - Nov. 1
College of Charleston

Abstract
Why has it been so difficult to integrate paleontology and mainstream evolutionary biology? Some of the common (although rarely explicit) answers are: (1) the two fields have fundamentally different aims (e.g., evolutionary biology studies processes, whereas paleontology documents patterns); (2) the data of paleontology simply dont bear on the questions studied in mainstream evolutionary biology (e.g., because they study events on different temporal scales), and (3) the tensions arise out of disciplinary squabbles for funding and prestige. This paper focuses on one important are of interaction between these fields phylogeny reconstruction in order to assess these claims. I argue that even though the three common arguments have some merit, they are not adequate to explain the persistent difficulty of integrating these fields. While some of the tensions between the fields are intellectual turf wars, the conceptual problems involved in reconstructing phylogeny particularly about how to use stratigraphic data are genuinely difficult. Furthermore, it is simply not the case that the two fields pursue completely distinct aims. Researchers do disagree about the aims of phylogeny reconstruction: some aspire to develop trees whereas others aim only for cladograms. But these disagreements about the aims of phylogeny reconstruction do not map neatly onto disciplinary boundaries, nor are these different aims completely distinct. Thus, I use this case study to point oward a richer and more nuanced diagnosis of the problem of integrating paleontology and population biology.

Biography
Todd Grantham received his PhD from Northwestern University in 1993 and is currently Associate Professor of Philosophy at the College of Charleston. In the past, Todd has written about the units of selection problem (especially species selection), evolutionary psychology, and evolutionary epistemology. His current research examines the ideal of the "unity of science" by reflecting on recent attempts to unify paleontology and evolutionary biology. In connection with this research project, Todd recently spent a year studying

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Fall 2001