The Arbitrariness of Scientific Systems

One of the most compelling themes in Every Living Thing is the fundamental arbitrariness underlying scientific classification systems, particularly as embodied in Linnaeus's taxonomic framework. Roberts demonstrates that Linnaeus's seemingly objective categories were actually built on limited observation, cultural prejudice, and convenient but ultimately arbitrary distinctions. This arbitrariness becomes starkly evident in the 1758 tenth edition of Systema Naturae, where Linnaeus dramatically revised his classifications to accommodate new research—thereby inadvertently validating Buffon's primary criticism that the system lacked inherent truth or permanence. The inclusion and subsequent removal of fantastical human categories like Homo nocturnus (night-dwelling man) and Homo caudatus (tailed man) exposes how the system encoded folklore and travelers' tales rather than empirical observation. If the categories themselves must constantly shift and reshape, Roberts asks, what permanence or truth do they actually capture? The arrival of the platypus specimen in 1799 serves as the perfect...