Abstract
THIS is a really great book, well worthy of close study not only by biologists but also by all scientific men. For is not biology the science of life, and the first and most fundamental question raised by that science is “What is life?” The author endeavours to look this question, and the other far-reaching questions which arise out of it, fairly in the face, and it is then seen that not only is biological science in the narrower sense involved, but also all other science of every description. Life is primarily our own existence, and secondarily the nature of other ‘things’ in which we suspect an existence in some respects at least similar to our own. The first problem presented, therefore, to biology is the analysis of our own existence.
Theoretische Biologie.
Von J. von Uexküll. Zweite gänzlich neu bearbeitete Auflage. Pp. x + 253. (Berlin: Julius Springer, 1928.) 15 gold marks.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Get just this article for as long as you need it
$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
MACBRIDE, E. A Philosophy of Biology. Nature 124, 83–85 (1929). https://doi.org/10.1038/124083a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/124083a0