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 state witness in the 1981 test case (McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education) 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.

Selected works

• The Evolution-Creation Struggle (2005) ISBN 0674016874
• Darwin and design: does evolution have a purpose? (2003) ISBN 0674016319
• The evolution wars: a guide to the debates (2003) ISBN 1576071855
• Can a Darwinian be a Christian? the relationship between science and religion (2001) ISBN 0521637163
• Biology and the foundation of ethics (1999) ISBN 0521559235
• Mystery of mysteries: is evolution a social construction? (1999) ISBN 0674005430
• But is it science? the philosophical question in the creation/evolution controversy (1996) ISBN 087954397
• Monad to man: the concept of progress in evolutionary biology (1996) ISBN 0674582209
• Evolutionary naturalism: selected essays (1995) ISBN 0415089972
• The Darwinian paradigm: essays on its history, philosophy and religious implications (1989) ISBN 0415089514
• The Philosophy of biology today (1988) ISBN 0887069118
• Homosexuality: a philosophical inquiry (1988) ISBN 0631175539
• Taking Darwin seriously: a naturalistic approach to philosophy (1986) ISBN 0631135421
• Sociobiology, sense or nonsense? (1st ed. 1979, 2nd ed. 1985) ISBN 9027717982
• Darwinism defended, a guide to the evolution controversies (1982) ISBN 0201062739
• Is science sexist? and other problems in the biomedical sciences (1981) ISBN 9027712506
• The Darwinian revolution (1979) ISBN 0226731642

Sources

• An Interview with Michael Ruse California Literary Review
• Canadian Who's Who 1993.
• Speech by Michael Ruse 1993 to American Association for the Advancement of Science

1940 births | American academics | Canadian philosophers | Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada | Living people | Natives of Birmingham | McMaster University alumni