"Humans are not the end result of predictable evolutionary progress, but rather a fortuitous cosmic afterthought, a tiny little twig on the enormously arborescent bush of life, which if replanted from seed, would almost surely not grow this twig again."
When one listens to Stephen Jay Gould speak, what he says is clearly understandable, comprehensible and commonsensical it is amazing as he is talking about very complicated things. He uses metaphors to clearly illustrate very complicated topics. He is truly "theater of the mind".
Stephen Jay Gould was born in New York City in 1941. When he was five years old he was taken to the American Museum of Natural History by his father, a court stenographer with an interest in natural history. Gould's interest in paleontology grew unabated through his childhood and teenage years, rivaling his intense passion for the New York Yankees. He completed his undergraduate education with a degree in geology from Antioch College in 1963 and returned to New York to earn a Ph.D. in paleontology from Columbia University in 1967. He has been Professor of Geology and Zoology at Harvard University, currently as the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology and Professor of Geology at Harvard University, Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology in the Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, and adjunct member of the Department of the History of Science. He has established a reputation as one of Harvard's most visible and engaging instructors, offering courses in paleontology, biology, geology, and the history of science. Since 1996, he also has been Vincent Astor Visiting Research Professor of Biology at New York University and now divides his time between New York and Cambridge.
Gould has presented the implications, benefits, and shortcomings of science to a literate public. Reflecting his belief that science is a "culturally embedded" discipline and a "creative human activity," Gould's writing knits together arcane and amusing details drawn from a wide range of sources. He has shaped and participated in crucial debates of the biological and geological sciences, particularly with regard to the theory of evolution, the interpretation of fossil evidence, and the meaning of diversity and change in biology. He has distinguished himself elaborating his critique of contemporary evolutionary theory via an eclectic range of discourse, deriving inspiration from his personal reflections across a wide array of historical and humanistic disciplines.
Books and Publications
Ontogeny and PhylogenyThe Mismeasure of Man
Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History
The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History
Hens Teeth and Horses Toes: Further Reflections in Natural History
The Flamingo's Smile
Time's Arrow, Time's Cycle
An Urchin in the Storm
Wonderful Life
Bully for Brontosaurus
Eight Little Piggies
Full House: The Spread of Excellence from Plato to Darwin
Natural History Magazine - Monthly Column
Dinosaur in a Haystack