Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology
This paper considers how a classification of causal effects as comprising efficient, formal, material, and final causation can provide a useful understanding of how emergence takes place in biology and technology, with formal, material, and final causation all including cases of downward causation;...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Entropy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/25/9/1301 |
| _version_ | 1797580197550096384 |
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| author | George F. R. Ellis |
| author_facet | George F. R. Ellis |
| author_sort | George F. R. Ellis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper considers how a classification of causal effects as comprising efficient, formal, material, and final causation can provide a useful understanding of how emergence takes place in biology and technology, with formal, material, and final causation all including cases of downward causation; they each occur in both synchronic and diachronic forms. Taken together, they underlie why all emergent levels in the hierarchy of emergence have causal powers (which is Noble’s principle of biological relativity) and so why causal closure only occurs when the upwards and downwards interactions between all emergent levels are taken into account, contra to claims that some underlying physics level is by itself causality complete. A key feature is that stochasticity at the molecular level plays an important role in enabling agency to emerge, underlying the possibility of final causation occurring in these contexts. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:47:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7cf1ec024a8448edb9c7c85de9648da2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1099-4300 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:47:22Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Entropy |
| spelling | doaj.art-7cf1ec024a8448edb9c7c85de9648da22023-11-19T10:35:42ZengMDPI AGEntropy1099-43002023-09-01259130110.3390/e25091301Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and TechnologyGeorge F. R. Ellis0Mathematics Department, The New Institute, University of Cape Town, 20354 Hamburg, GermanyThis paper considers how a classification of causal effects as comprising efficient, formal, material, and final causation can provide a useful understanding of how emergence takes place in biology and technology, with formal, material, and final causation all including cases of downward causation; they each occur in both synchronic and diachronic forms. Taken together, they underlie why all emergent levels in the hierarchy of emergence have causal powers (which is Noble’s principle of biological relativity) and so why causal closure only occurs when the upwards and downwards interactions between all emergent levels are taken into account, contra to claims that some underlying physics level is by itself causality complete. A key feature is that stochasticity at the molecular level plays an important role in enabling agency to emerge, underlying the possibility of final causation occurring in these contexts.https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/25/9/1301Aristotlecausationemergencecausal closuredownwards causation |
| spellingShingle | George F. R. Ellis Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology Entropy Aristotle causation emergence causal closure downwards causation |
| title | Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology |
| title_full | Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology |
| title_fullStr | Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology |
| title_full_unstemmed | Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology |
| title_short | Efficient, Formal, Material, and Final Causes in Biology and Technology |
| title_sort | efficient formal material and final causes in biology and technology |
| topic | Aristotle causation emergence causal closure downwards causation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/25/9/1301 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT georgefrellis efficientformalmaterialandfinalcausesinbiologyandtechnology |