Stephen Jay Gould | |
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| Born | September 10, 1941 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 20, 2002 (aged 60) New York City, New York, U.S. |
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| Fields | Paleontology, evolutionary biology, history of science |
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| Thesis | Pleistocene and Recent History of the Subgenus Poecilozonites (Poecilozonites) (Gastropoda: Pulmonata) in Bermuda: An Evolutionary Microcosm (1967) |
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Stephen Jay Gould (/ɡuːld/ GOOLD; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely read authors of popular science of his generation.[1] Gould spent most of his career teaching at Harvard University and working at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. In 1996, Gould was hired as the Vincent Astor Visiting Research Professor of Biology at New York University, after which he divided his time teaching between there and Harvard.
Gould's most significant contribution to evolutionary biology was the theory of punctuated equilibrium[2] developed with Niles Eldredge in 1972.[3] The theory proposes that most evolution is characterized by long periods of evolutionary stability, infrequently punctuated by swift periods of branching speciation. The theory was contrasted against phyletic gradualism, the popular idea that evolutionary change is marked by a pattern of smooth and continuous change in the fossil record.[4]
Most of Gould's empirical research was based on the land snail genera Poecilozonites and Cerion. He also made important contributions to evolutionary developmental biology, receiving broad professional recognition for his book Ontogeny and Phylogeny.[5] In evolutionary theory he opposed strict selectionism, sociobiology as applied to humans, and evolutionary psychology. He campaigned against creationism and proposed that science and religion should be considered two distinct fields (or "non-overlapping magisteria") whose authorities do not overlap.[6]
Gould was known by the general public mainly for his 300 popular essays in Natural History magazine,[7] and his numerous books written for both the specialist and non-specialist. In April 2000, the US Library of Congress named him a "Living Legend".[8][9]
- ^ Shermer, Michael (2002), "This View of Science" (PDF), Social Studies of Science, 32 (4): 489–525, doi:10.1177/0306312702032004001, PMID 12503565, S2CID 220879229.
- ^ "Stephen Jay Gould, Ph.D. Biography and Interview". achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
- ^ Eldredge, Niles, and S. J. Gould (1972). "Punctuated equilibria: an alternative to phyletic gradualism." In T.J.M. Schopf, ed., Models in Paleobiology. San Francisco: Freeman, Cooper and Company, pp. 82–115.
- ^ Sepkoski, David (2012). Rereading the Fossil Record: The Growth of Paleobiology as an Evolutionary Discipline. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0226748580.
- ^ Müller, Gerd B. (2013). "Beyond Spandrels: Stephen J. Gould, EvoDevo, and the Extended Synthesis". In Danieli, G.; Minelli, A.; Pievani, T. (eds.). Stephen J. Gould: The Scientific Legacy. pp. 85–99. doi:10.1007/978-88-470-5424-0_6. ISBN 978-88-470-5423-3.
- ^ Gould, S. J. (1997). "Nonoverlapping magisteria." Archived June 15, 2021, at the Wayback Machine Natural History 106 (March): 16–22.
- ^ Tattersall, Ian. "Remembering Stephen Jay Gould". naturalhistorymag.com. Retrieved January 19, 2024.
- ^ Library of Congress. "Living Legend: Stephen Jay Gould". Library of Congress. Retrieved June 7, 2013.
- ^ Fahy, Declan (2015). The New Celebrity Scientists: Out of the Lab and into the Limelight. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.