The past decades have witnessed fascinating and controversial advances in the biological sciences. One may think, for instance, of methods for analyzing the basic molecular units of heredity; of proposals and clarifications of the appropriate methods of classifying organisms; of exciting new ideas about the nature of the fossil record and their implications for the elucidation of evolutionary mechanisms; and of ways in which the biological study of behavior has been extended, theoretically and experimentally, and of supposed implications for humankind. To add to these internal issues, the outside world has also seen much debate on biology - in the world of education, for instance.

These and other issues have made biology one of the most exhilarating areas of science, and have aroused in biologists and philosophers an awareness that there is a need for meta-theoretical analysis, both about the very nature of biology, as well as about its social implications.

Biology and Philosophy is aimed at a broad readership, drawn from both the sciences and the humanities. The journal subscribes to no specific school of biology, nor of philosophy, and publishes work from authors of all persuasions and all disciplines. The editorial board reflects this attitude in its composition and its world-wide membership.

Each issue of Biology and Philosophy carries one or more discussions or comparative reviews, permitting the in-depth study of important works and topics.