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Daniel J Nicholson

@djnicholson.bsky.social
1.8K followers 358 following 47 posts

Integrating the History, Philosophy, & Theory of Biology

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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
It's much worse than that. The paper is written as if the entire discipline of philosophy of biology (a professional field with its own journals, textbooks, international societies, monographs..) doesn't exist! Next time someone asks me why we need philosophy of biology I'll refer them to this paper
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svateboje.bsky.social @svateboje.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
a very nice paper from @djnicholson.bsky.social on similar structures in biology (esp recommended for the discussion of cellular heterogeneity). Population Thinking and the Uniqueness of Biological Entities Acta Biotheor. 2025 Jun 13;73(2):8. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Population Thinking and the Uniqueness of Biological Entities
The concept of ‘population thinking’ was introduced by Ernst Mayr in the mid-twentieth century and it has since become one of the most pervasive notions in the philosophy of biology. Despite its influ...
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
curious to hear more!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
I recently wrote a little book on Schrödinger's little book. You can find it here
share.google
What Is Life? Revisited
Cambridge Core - Philosophy: General Interest - What Is Life? Revisited
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Program looks great! Hope you have a blast
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
What an honour to have one of my favourite historians of biology, Laurent Loison, review my book for History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences. He does an amazing job summarizing the main scholarly contributions of the book. I particularly appreciated his reflection at the very end. Read it here
rdcu.be
Daniel J. Nicholson: What is life? Revisited
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
A very nice surprise awaited me in the mailbox this morning: this gem by @alejandrofabregastejeda.com. It’s a pleasure to see work like this come to fruition—elegant, insightful, and evidently the result of a tremendous amount of work. Looking forward to reading it closely. Congratulations again!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Great resource! Just a quick note: the photo you have posted of Grover Maxwell is not of the philosopher of science with than name but rather of a Georgia-based businessman of the mid 20th C. I haven't been able to find any photos of the philosopher online...
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
It is!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
Great to see this out!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
It was a pleasure to talk to Phil for an hour and a half about the conceptual foundations of the life sciences as part of his New Biology project. It's an exciting time to be a philosopher of biology! #hpbio #philsci #philsky
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Vera Straetmanns @yavannakemi.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
This semester, we will be reading selected chapters from "Everything flows", edited by @djnicholson.bsky.social and John Dupré in our Reading Group. All interested are welcome to join us at @ruhr-uni-bochum.de (room NDEF04/346). If needed, we can also arrange hybrid meetings. #HPBio #PhDSky
Poster for this semester's reading group. We meet every first Wednesday at 4:15pm (CET) at Ruhr University Bochum (room NDEF04/346). If you need more information (abstract of the book, topics of the individual dates, information about the moodle course etc.), please e-mail me! vera.straetmanns[at]rub.de
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Great to hear this, Vera! I hope the readings lead to some fantastic discussions. Unfortunately I'm teaching at that exact time this semester
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Here's another deep dive on 'What Is Life? Revisited' for Friction Philosophy. Surely there's nothing more to be said about Schrödinger's famous book? Think again! Join us as we travel from quantum mechanics to genetics & molecular biology via statistical mechanics, thermodynamics, & cybernetics
youtube.com
142. Dan Nicholson | What is Life?
YouTube video by Friction
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Great headline! 😄
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Philip Ball @philipcball.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
This short book by @djnicholson.bsky.social is extraordinarily good for understanding not just the genesis, message and myths of Schrödinger's book but also why molecular biology developed in the way it did (and what's problematic about that). www.cambridge.org/core/element...
cambridge.org
What Is Life? Revisited
Cambridge Core - Philosophy of Science - What Is Life? Revisited
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
Thanks, Phil! I knew you'd get a kick out of it 👍🏼
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Wow, congratulations, Jan! (On both counts!)
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Congratulations! 🎉🎉🎉
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Ehud, out of curiosity: which text by Gayon did you assign?
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 23/11/2025
Feel this so much! 😆
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
Gracias Juan!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
Yes, that's exactly right. And in fact I note in my book that life is a manifestation of both OFO *and* OFD processes. The former are necessary for its propagation, but the latter play a key role in its conservation. Both are essential for its perpetuation over evolutionary time scales.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
Couldn't agree more
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
Thanks Benjamin, I appreciate that. And I'll keep an eye out for Riskin's new book!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
I had SO much fun talking to Paul for almost 2 hours about my new book on Schrödinger & molecular biology. Easily one of the most enjoyable podcasts I've ever done. Check it out! P.S. CUP has made the PDF of my book free to download for 2 more weeks. Get it here: www.cambridge.org/core/element...
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
I actually thank Watson in the acknowledgements of my book, where I note that he "was appalled that I had the audacity to criticize molecular biology’s Schrödingerian view of the cell. Paradoxically, I found Watson’s complaints rather reassuring, as they showed that I am not attacking a strawman"
Watson and Nicholson speaking after Nicholson's talk at CSHL
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
When I presented my research on Schrödinger at CSHL, everyone was surprised to find Jim Watson seated up front in what was apparently his first public appearance since the pandemic. During my talk, he snored so loudly that he woke himself up, and in the Q&A he loudly described my argument as "Crap!"
James Watson attending a research talk by Daniel Nicholson on the legacy of Schrödinger's 'What Is Life?' at CSHL
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Thanks, Ed!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Nice! Interested to hear what you make of my analysis
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Note for purists: the original published version had a typo at the bottom of the first page (introduced during copy-editing) which rendered the last sentence nonsensical. This has now been corrected in the online/PDF version. The printed version coming out next month will also be the corrected one.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Last chance to download my book for free! It's still available until tomorrow.
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Philipp Niethammer @niethammerlab.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
Daniel‘s lectures at our GSK Cancer Science Graduate School are always a curriculum highlight! Contemplating the implicit assumptions of modern biological science can foster new ways of thinking, as some of our old go-to concepts become unwieldy and show their limitations. Students loved it!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
The flip side is that because Schrödinger's ideas lent themselves to numerous (often contradictory) interpretations, their influence was magnified as a result. Readers of WIL have found in it whatever they happened to be looking for, which is why the book means different things to different people.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
But the importance of negative entropy for Schrödinger's view of life has been overstated and misconstrued. Schrödinger is not the apostle of self-organization that proponents of non-equilibrium thermodynamics have made him out to be. In fact he is saying the opposite of what they think he's saying.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
As I show in my book, Schrödinger's idea of 'negative entropy' has been interpreted in a variety of different ways. Proponents of cybernetics and information theory on the one hand and of non-equilibrium thermodynamics on the other have drawn on it for different purposes.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Thanks Christian! Monod's C&N builds on many of the themes in WIL. In fact, in my book I argue that the former represents the realization of the biological vision of the latter. And you're right that Monod articulates it more explicitly. Life is based on OFO according to Schrödinger hence my focus
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Nice! That sounds quite close to my interpretation. Would love to read your analysis; did you publish it?
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
¡Gracias, Alejandro! Este proyecto ha sido toda una odisea, pero me alegra mucho poder compartirlo por fin con el mundo. Verás que te agradezco explícitamente en un pie de página los datos que encontrastes en los archivos de CUP, y también al final, por supuesto :) Un abrazo
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Thanks Kevin!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Thanks Ehud! I'm curious to hear what you make of it!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Thanks Chris. And hope the conference today goes well! I wil try to catch some of it online.
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
My little book on Schrödinger's famous classic 'What Is Life?' is out! Offering the most comprehensive analysis ever undertaken of the book's origins, reception, impact, and legacy, it uncovers Schrödinger's motivations in writing it, and shows how it has shaped our current understanding of the cell
cambridge.org
<i>What Is Life?</i> Revisited
Cambridge Core - Philosophy: General Interest - <i>What Is Life?</i> Revisited
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
¡¡Enhorabuena, Alejandro!! 🎉🎉🎉
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 22/08/2025
I think the reasons are not just institutional. Historians of science should have the freedom to do whatever they want, but they should not be terribly surprised when scientists ignore them. In any case they don't own history. The history of science is far too important to be left only to historians
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Historians tend to write for other historians, not for scientists (or philosophers, for that matter)
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Philippe huneman @philippehune.bsky.social · 02/08/2025
If you missed that great Cognizing life conference in Tubingen organized by Christoph Hueck two weeks ago, here are the videos of the presentations. Talks by Denis Walsh, Joan Steigerwald, Dan Nicholson and many others.  www.clc2025.de/videos
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Jim Lowe @jwelowe.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
Weds 14:30/16:30 #ISHPSSB2025 - Biological Variation: Theory and Practice With @djnicholson.bsky.social, Marlene van den Bos, Alan C. Love, Staffan Müller-Wille, Greg Radick, @rosetrappes.bsky.social, Cristina Villegas Explore variation across distinct epistemic & ontological frameworks with us!
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Daniel J Nicholson @djnicholson.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
Really looking forward to this, Phil! (And to finally meeting you in person)
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Vera Straetmanns @yavannakemi.bsky.social · 15/07/2025
Looking forward to the "Cognizing Life Conference 2025", 16.-19. July! With talks by @djnicholson.bsky.social, @dalianassar.bsky.social, @gregoryrupik.bsky.social, @philippehune.bsky.social and many more! You can participate online, all info here: www.clc2025.de #HPBio #PhilSci #HistSci
Screenshot of the website for the Cognizing Life Conference 2025.
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