Michael Ruse

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Michael Ruse (born June 21, 1940 in Birmingham, England) is a philosopher of science, working on the philosophy of the biology, and is well known for his work on the argument between creationism and evolutionary biology. He was born in England, took his undergraduate degree at the University of Bristol (1962), his master's degree at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario (1964), and Ph.D. at the University of Bristol (1970). Ruse taught at the University of Guelph Canada for 35 years. Since his retirement from Guelph, he has taught at Florida State University and is, since 2000, the Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy. In 1986, he was elected as a Fellow of both the Royal Society of Canada and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has received honourable doctorates from the University of Bergen, Norway (1990) and the McMaster University, Ontario, Canada (2003).

Ruse was a witness for the plaintiff in the 1981 test case (McLean v. Arkansas) of the state law permitting the teaching of "creation science" in the Arkansas school system (signed by governor Frank White). The federal judge ruled that the state law was unconstitutional. Ruse takes the position that it is possible to reconcile the Christian religion with Evolutionary Theory, unlike, for example, Richard Dawkins, Phillip E. Johnson or Edward O. Wilson. He now debates regularly with William A. Dembski, a known proponent of intelligent design.

Ruse is a prolific author published by prestigious university presses. He founded the scientific journal Biology and Philosophy and has published numerous books and articles.

[edit] Selected works

The Evolution-Creation Struggle (2005) ISBN 0-674-01687-4
Darwin and design: does evolution have a purpose? (2003) ISBN 0-674-01631-9
The evolution wars: a guide to the debates (2003) ISBN 1-57607-185-5
Can a Darwinian be a Christian? the relationship between science and religion (2001) ISBN 0-521-63716-3
Biology and the foundation of ethics (1999) ISBN 0-521-55923-5
Mystery of mysteries: is evolution a social construction? (1999) ISBN 0-674-00543-0
But is it science? the philosophical question in the creation/evolution controversy (1996) ISBN 0879754397
Monad to man: the concept of progress in evolutionary biology (1996) ISBN 0-674-58220-9
Evolutionary naturalism: selected essays (1995) ISBN 0-415-08997-2
The Darwinian paradigm: essays on its history, philosophy and religious implications (1989) ISBN 0-415-08951-4
The Philosophy of biology today (1988) ISBN 0-88706-911-8
Homosexuality: a philosophical inquiry (1988) ISBN 0-631-17553-9
Taking Darwin seriously: a naturalistic approach to philosophy (1986) ISBN 0-631-13542-1
Sociobiology, sense or nonsense? (1st ed. 1979, 2nd ed. 1985) ISBN 90-277-1798-2
Darwinism defended, a guide to the evolution controversies (1982) ISBN 0-201-06273-9
Is science sexist? and other problems in the biomedical sciences (1981) ISBN 90-277-1250-6
The Darwinian revolution (1979) ISBN 0-226-73164-2