Topic description:
In a series of papers in 2000, philosopher of biology James Griesemer introduced what he coined a 'reproducer perspective' on the evolutionary process. First, I will explore how this perspective manages to steer clear of some of the problems that face the gene's eye and the developmental systems perspectives on evolution. I will discuss the taxonomy of 'modes of multiplication' Griesemer has developed, and explore a way of further extending this taxonomy, to make more sense of cultural evolution from the reproducer perspective. In this exploration I will use a generalized notion of what is sometimes called 'exogenetics', the complement of the all too familiar (endo)genetics.

Biographical note:
Joeri Witteveen is currently a PhD student in the philosophy of biology at the University of Cambridge. He has previously studied at the University of Maastricht (BA), the University of California at Berkeley, and the London School of Economics (MSc). From December 2007 until July 2008 he was a predoctoral Fellow at the KLI.