1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910779170203321

Titolo

The environment : philosophy, science, and ethics / / edited by William P. Kabasenche, Michael O'Rourke, and Matthew H. Slater

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cambridge, Mass., : MIT Press, ©2012

ISBN

0-262-30102-4

1-280-49892-7

9786613594150

0-262-30177-6

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (316 p.)

Collana

Topics in contemporary philosophy

Altri autori (Persone)

KabasencheWilliam P. <1972->

O'RourkeMichael <1963->

SlaterMatthew H. <1977->

Disciplina

333.7

Soggetti

Philosophy of nature

Nature

Ecology - Philosophy

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Topics in Contemporary Philosophy; Contents; Acknowledgments; 1 The Environment: How to Understand It and What to Do about It; 2 The Concept of the Environment in Evolutionary Theory; 3 What If Ecological Communities Are Not Wholes?; 4 The Environment, from a Behavioral Perspective; 5 Systems Theory and the New Ecophilosophy; 6 Situated Adaptationism; 7 Thinking Ecologically: The Legacy of Rachel Carson; 8 Climate, Consensus, and Contrarians; 9 Nature as the School of the Moral World: Kant on Taking an Interest in Natural Beauty; 10 Precaution Has Its Reasons

11 Add to Cart? Environmental "Amenities" and Cost-Benefit Analysis12 Can We-and Should We-Make Reparation to "Nature"?; 13 Getting the Bad Out: Remediation Technologies and Respect for Others; 14 Emissions, Economics, and Equity: Problems with Nuclear Solutions to Climate Change; 15 On the Need for Front-Line Climate Ethics; Contributors; Index

Sommario/riassunto

Philosophical reflections on the environment began with early



philosophers' invocation of a cosmology that mixed natural and supernatural phenomena. Today, the central philosophical problem posed by the environment involves not what it can teach us about ourselves and our place in the cosmic order but rather how we can understand its workings in order to make better decisions about our own conduct regarding it. The resulting inquiry spans different areas of contemporary philosophy, many of which are represented by the fifteen original essays in this volume. The contributors first consider conceptual problems generated by rapid advances in biology and ecology, examining such topics as ecological communities, adaptation, and scientific consensus. The contributors then turn to epistemic and axiological issues, first considering philosophical aspects of environmental decision making and then assessing particular environmental policies (largely relating to climate change), including reparations, remediation, and nuclear power, from a normative perspective.