Robert N. Brandon | Scholars@Duke

Robert N. Brandon
Professor of Philosophy

Robert N. Brandon (Ph.D. 1979, Harvard) joined the Duke Faculty in fall of 1979. He holds a joint appointment in Philosophy and Biology . He has published articles in Philosophy of Science , Studies in History and Philosophy of Science , Biology and Philosophy , PSA 1980 and PSA 1982 , some of which have subsequently been anthologized. He has co-edited (with Richard Burian) Genes, Organisms, Populations: Controversies over the Units of Selection (Bradford Books, MIT Press, 1984), and his book, Adaptation and Environment was published by Princeton University Press in 1990. His most recent book Concepts and Methods in Evolutionary Biology (Cambridge) was published in 1996. During the spring of 1984 he had a visiting appointment at the Department of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh. Brandon is a member of Duke's Center for the Philosophy of Biology .

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Professor of Philosophy, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1993
Chair in the Department of Philosophy, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2020
Professor of Biology, Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2002
Affiliate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society, Duke Science & Society, Initiatives 2014

Contact Information

209 West Duke Bldg, Durham, NC 27708
Duke Box 90743, Durham, NC 27708-0743
rbrandon@duke.edu (919) 660-3067

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Ph.D., Harvard University 1979
- B.A., University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill 1974
Duke Appointment History
- Chairman, Department of Philosophy, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2001 - 2004
- Interim Chairman, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2000 - 2001
- Professor, Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1993 - 1996
- Chairman, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1989 - 1993
- Associate Professor, Biology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1989 - 1993
- Associate Professor with Tenure, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1985 - 1992
- Associate Professor, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1984 - 1985
- Assistant Professor, Philosophy, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 1979 - 1984
Research
Selected Grants
- Post-doctoral/Graduate Research and Training Program in Philosophy of Biology awarded by National Science Foundation 2004 - 2008
- Theory and Experiment in Population Biology awarded by National Science Foundation 1994 - 1995
- The Concept of the Environment in the Theory of Natural Selection awarded by National Science Foundation 1987 - 1988
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Books
  - Brandon, R. N., and Roger Samson. Integrating Development and Evolution. Edited by Roger Samson and Robert Brandon. The MIT Press, 2007.
- Academic Articles
  - McShea, Daniel W., Steve C. Wang, and Robert N. Brandon. “A quantitative formulation of biology's first law.” Evolution; International Journal of Organic Evolution 73, no. 6 (June 2019): 1101–15. https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.13735.
    Full Text
  - Fleming, Leonore, and Robert Brandon. “Why flying dogs are rare: A general theory of luck in evolutionary transitions.” Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences 49 (February 2015): 24–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shpsc.2014.10.006.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R., and L. Fleming. “Drift sometimes dominates selection, and vice versa: A reply to Clatterbuck, Sober and Lewontin.” Biology and Philosophy 29, no. 4 (January 1, 2014): 577–85. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-014-9437-z.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N., and D. W. McShea. “Four solutions for four puzzles.” Biology and Philosophy 27, no. 5 (September 1, 2012): 737–44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-012-9330-6.
    Full Text
  - Ramsey, G., and R. Brandon. “Why reciprocal altruism is not a kind of group selection.” Biology and Philosophy 26, no. 3 (May 1, 2011): 385–400. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-011-9261-7.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “A non-newtonian newtonian model of evolution: The ZFEL view.” Philosophy of Science 77, no. 5 (January 1, 2010): 702–15. https://doi.org/10.1086/656901.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, Robert N. “The Principle of Drift: Biology's First Law.” The Journal of Philosophy CII, no. 7 (July 2006): 319–35.
  - Brandon, R. N. “The difference between selection and drift: A reply to Millstein.” Biology and Philosophy 20, no. 1 (January 1, 2005): 153–70. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-004-1070-9.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “The Units of Selection Revisited: The Modules of Selection.” Biology and Philosophy 14, no. 2 (January 1, 1999): 167–80. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006682200831.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “Does biology have laws? The experimental evidence.” Philosophy of Science 64, no. 4 SUPPL. 1 (January 1, 1997). https://doi.org/10.1086/392621.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “Discussion: Reply to Hitchcock.” Biology and Philosophy 12, no. 4 (January 1, 1997): 531–38. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006576129655.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N., and M. D. Rausher. “Testing adaptationism: A comment on Orzack and Sober.” American Naturalist 148, no. 1 (January 1, 1996): 189–201. https://doi.org/10.1086/285918.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N., and S. Carson. “The indeterministic character of evolutionary theory: No "No hidden variables proof" but no room for determinism either.” Philosophy of Science 63, no. 3 (January 1, 1996): 315–37. https://doi.org/10.1086/289915.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “Theory and experiment in evolutionary biology.” Synthese 99, no. 1 (April 1, 1994): 59–73. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01064530.
    Full Text
  - Mishler, B. D., and R. N. Brandon. “Sex and the individuality of species: A response to Ghiselin.” Biology and Philosophy 4, no. 1 (January 1, 1989): 77–79. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00144042.
    Full Text
  - Mishler, B. D., and R. N. Brandon. “Individuality, pluralism, and the phylogenetic species concept.” Biology and Philosophy 2, no. 4 (October 1, 1987): 397–414. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00127698.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N., and N. Hornstein. “From icons to symbols: Some speculations on the origins of language.” Biology and Philosophy 1, no. 2 (June 1, 1986): 169–89. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00142900.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “Biological teleology: Questions and explanations.” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 12, no. 2 (January 1, 1981): 91–105. https://doi.org/10.1016/0039-3681(81)90015-7.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “Adaptation and evolutionary theory.” Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 9, no. 3 (January 1, 1978): 181–206. https://doi.org/10.1016/0039-3681(78)90005-5.
    Full Text
- Book Sections
  - Brandon, R. N. “A general case for functional pluralism.” In Functions: Selection and Mechanisms, 97–104, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5304-4_6.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N. “The concept of the environment in evolutionary theory.” In The Environment: Philosophy, Science, and Ethics, 19–35, 2012.
  - Brandon, R. N. “The Concept of the Environment in Evolutionary Theory.” In The Environment: Topics in Contemporary Philosophy, edited by M. O’rourke and M. Slater, Vol. 9. MIT Press, 2011.
  - Brandon, R. N. “Teleology in self-organizing systems.” In Self-Organization and Emergence in Life Sciences, 267–81, 2006. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3917-4_16.
    Full Text
  - Brandon, R. N., and Grant Ramsey. “What’s Wrong with the Emergentist Statistical Interpretation of Natural Selection and Random Drift.” In The Cambridge Companion to Philosophy of Biology, edited by Michael Ruse and David Hull. Cambridge University Press, 2006.
Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses
Scholarly, Clinical, & Service Activities
Presentations & Appearances
Service to the Profession
- External evaluator on tenure cases at Arizona State University and Tufts.. January 7, 2012 2012
- Manuscript referee for Biology and Philosophy, Philosophy of Science, and The British Journal for Philosophy of Science.. January 7, 2012 2012

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Education, Training, & Certifications

Duke Appointment History

Selected Grants

Selected Publications

Books

Academic Articles

Book Sections

Recent Courses

Presentations & Appearances

Service to the Profession