Peter Godfrey-Smith is a professor in the School of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sydney and Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the Graduate Center, CUNY. He is the author of several acclaimed books, including "Other Minds: The Octopus and the Evolution of Intelligent Life," a bestselling work shortlisted for the 2017 Royal Society Science Book Prize and translated into over twenty languages. His other notable publications include "Metazoa," "Theory and Reality: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Science," and "Darwinian Populations and Natural Selection," which won the 2010 Lakatos Award for outstanding contributions to the philosophy of science.
Godfrey-Smith specializes in the philosophy of biology and the philosophy of mind, with additional research interests in pragmatism, general philosophy of science, and epistemology. Educated at the University of Sydney and UC San Diego, he has held academic positions at Stanford University, Harvard University, and the Australian National University. His work often explores the intersection of evolutionary biology and cognitive science, as exemplified in his writings on animal intelligence and the nature of consciousness.
Beyond his academic contributions, Godfrey-Smith's photography and videography have been featured in prominent publications such as the "New York Times" and "National Geographic." His multidisciplinary approach bridges scientific inquiry with philosophical reflection, establishing him as a leading voice in contemporary discussions on the evolution of intelligence and the natural world.
Non-Fiction Books
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Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Complexity and the Function of Mind in Nature
1998
2
Darwinian Populations and Natural Selection
2009
3
Philosophy of Biology
2013
4
Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness
2016
5
Metazoa: Animal Life and the Birth of the Mind
2020
6
Living on Earth
2024
Science and Its Conceptual Foundations Books
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Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
The Great Devonian Controversy (By: Martin J.S. Rudwick)
1985
2
Images of science (By: Paul M. Churchland)
1985
3
The Shaky Game (By: Arthur Fine)
1986
4
Darwin and the Emergence of Evolutionary Theories of Mind and Behavior (By: Robert J. Richards)
1987
5
From Mineralogy to Geology (By: Rachel Laudan)
1987
6
Science As a Process (By: David L. Hull)
1988
7
Explaining Science (By: Ronald N. Giere)
1988
8
The Highlands Controversy (By: David Oldroyd)
1990
9
Science and Relativism (By: Larry Laudan)
1990
10
Reading the Shape of Nature (By: Mary P. Winsor)
1991
11
The State of Nature (By: Gregg Mitman)
1992
12
Descartes' Metaphysical Physics (By: Daniel Garber)
1992
13
The Meaning of Evolution (By: Robert J. Richards)
1992
14
The Politics of Evolution, Morphology, Medicine, and Reform in Radical London (By: Adrian J. Desmond)
1992
15
Economics--Mathematical Politics or Science of Diminishing Returns? (By: Alex Rosenberg)
1992
16
Galileo, Courtier (By: Mario Biagioli)
1993
17
Styles of Scientific Thought (By: Jonathan Harwood)
1993
18
In the Wake of Chaos (By: Stephen H. Kellert)
1993
19
Berkeley's Philosophy of Mathematics (By: Douglas M. Jesseph)
1993
20
A Social History of Truth (By: Steven Shapin)
1994
21
Discovery and Explanation in Biology and Medicine (By: Kenneth F. Schaffner)
1994
22
Durkheim's Philosophy of Science and the Sociology of Knowledge: Creating an Intellectual Niche (By: Warren Schmaus)
1994
23
Instrumental Biology, or The Disunity of Science (By: Alex Rosenberg)
1994
24
Quantum Mechanics (By: James T. Cushing)
1994
25
The Diffident Naturalist (By: Rose-Mary Sargent)
1995
26
Biology Takes Form (By: Lynn K. Nyhart)
1995
27
Modeling Nature (By: Sharon E. Kingsland)
1995
28
What Emotions Really Are (By: Paul E. Griffiths)
1997
29
Sex and Death (By: Kim Sterelny, Paul E. Griffiths)
1999
30
Squaring the Circle (By: Douglas M. Jesseph)
2000
31
Quantum Dialogue (By: Mara Beller)
2001
32
Reconciling Science and Religion (By: Peter J. Bowler)
2001
33
The Romantic Conception of Life (By: Robert J. Richards)