Knowing what individuals are and how they can be identified is a crucial question for both philosophers and scientists. This volume explores how different sciences handle the issue of understanding individuality, and reflects back on how this scientific work relates to metaphysics itself.

Contents ; Chapter 1: Introduction: Progressive steps towards a unified conception of individuality ; across the sciences ; Alexandre Guay & Thomas Pradeu ; Part 1: Metaphysical and logical foundations to individuality ; Chapter 2: Why individuality matters ; Stephane Chauvier ; A foreword to Jonathan Lowe's chapter ; Alexander Bird ; Chapter 3: Non-Individuals ; Jonathan Lowe ; Chapter 4: Individuality, quantum physics, and a metaphysics of non-individuals: the ; role of the formal ; Krause and Arenhart ; Part 2: Puzzles about individuals in biology and physics ; Chapter 5: Individuality and Life Cycles ; Peter Godfrey-Smith ; Chapter 6: What Biofilms Can Teach Us About Individuality ; Marc Ereshefsky and Makmiller Pedroso ; Chapter 7: Cell and Body: Individuals in Stem Cell Biology ; Melinda Fagan ; Chapter 8: Collective individuals: parallels between joint action and biological ; individuality ; Cedric Paternotte ; Chapter 9: On the Emergence of Individuals in Physics ; Simon Saunders ; Chapter 10: Are there individuals in physics and if so what are they? ; James Ladyman ; Chapter 11: Minimal Structural Essentialism: Why Physics Doesn't Care Which is ; Which ; David Glick ; Chapter 12: Bohm's approach and individuality ; Paavo Pylkkanen, Basil J. Hiley, and Ilkka Pattiniemi ; Chapter 13: Branch-Relative Identity ; Christina Conroy ; Part 3: Beyond disciplinary borders ; Chapter 14: The Metaphysics of Individuality and the Sciences ; Matteo Morganti ; Chapter 15: The Biological and the Mereological: Metaphysical Implications of the ; Individuality Thesis ; Matt Haber ; Chapter 16: To Be Continued: The Genidentity of Physical and Biological Processes ; Alexandre Guay and Thomas Pradeu ; Chapter 17: Experimental Realization of Individuality ; Ruey-Lin Chen ; Chapter 18: Eliminating Objects Across the Sciences ; Steven French

"this is a stimulating collection of papers...a solid and readable survey of contemporary philosophical thinking about issues at the intersection of the science and metaphysics of individuality." -- Metascience "Without a doubt, the individual contributions advance particular individuality debates in valuable ways. There is work that extends several influential approaches to individuality in biology." -- Studies in History and Philosophy of the Biological and Biomedical Sciences

Selling point: Offers a confrontation of views from metaphysics, philosophy of physics and philosophy biology - three different, and equally important, perspectives on the problem of individuality Selling point: Gathers together contributions from the world's leading figures in both general metaphysics and metaphysically oriented philosophy of science, such as Jonathan Lowe, Peter Godfrey-Smith, Steven French, James Ladyman, and Simon Saunders

Alexandre Guay is Professor of Philosophy of Natural Sciences and Analytical Philosophy at the Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium. Thomas Pradeu is Full-Time Researcher in Philosophy of Science at the CNRS in Bordeaux, France.

Selling point: Offers a confrontation of views from metaphysics, philosophy of physics and philosophy biology - three different, and equally important, perspectives on the problem of individuality Selling point: Gathers together contributions from the world's leading figures in both general metaphysics and metaphysically oriented philosophy of science, such as Jonathan Lowe, Peter Godfrey-Smith, Steven French, James Ladyman, and Simon Saunders