caa a22 4500 605448574 CHVBK 20210128100137.0 cr unu---uuuuu 210128e20150301xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s10539-014-9470-y doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s10539-014-9470-y Currie Adrian Philosophy Department, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., T2N 1N4, Calgary, AB, Canada aut Marsupial lions and methodological omnivory: function, success and reconstruction in paleobiology [Elektronische Daten] [Adrian Currie] Historical scientists frequently face incomplete data, and lack direct experimental access to their targets. This has led some philosophers and scientists to be pessimistic about the epistemic potential of the historical sciences. And yet, historical science often produces plausible, sophisticated hypotheses. I explain this capacity to generate knowledge in the face of apparent evidential scarcity by examining recent work on Thylacoleo carnifex, the ‘marsupial lion'. Here, we see two important methodological features. First, historical scientists are methodological omnivores, that is, they construct purpose-built epistemic tools tailored to generate evidence about highly specific targets. This allows them to produce multiple streams of independent evidence and thus maximize their epistemic reach. Second, investigative scaffolding: research proceeds in a piece-meal fashion, information only gaining evidential relevance once certain hypotheses are well supported. I illustrate scaffolding in a discussion of the nature of functional ascription in paleobiology. Frequently, different senses of ‘function' are not discriminated during paleobiological investigation—something which can mar adaptationist investigations of extant organisms. However, I argue that, due to scaffolding, conflating senses of ‘function' can be the right thing to do. Coarse-grained functional hypotheses are required before it is clear what evidence could discriminate between more fine-grained ones. I draw on omnivory and scaffolding to argue that pessimists make a bad empirical bet. It is a bad idea to bet against the epistemic fortunes of such opportunistic and resourceful scientists, especially when we have reason to think we will systematically underestimate the amount of evidence ultimately available to them. Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht, 2014 Historical science nationallicence Paleobiology nationallicence Function nationallicence Methodology nationallicence Scientific success nationallicence Reconstruction nationallicence Biology & Philosophy Springer Netherlands 30/2(2015-03-01), 187-209 0169-3867 30:2<187 2015 30 10539 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-014-9470-y text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10539-014-9470-y text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 100 1- Currie Adrian Philosophy Department, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., T2N 1N4, Calgary, AB, Canada aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Biology & Philosophy Springer Netherlands 30/2(2015-03-01), 187-209 0169-3867 30:2<187 2015 30 10539