In which T.J. Perkins examines the “ripening” of scientific research, and argues that cultural readiness is an important factor in understanding scientific discovery and progress
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Paradox of Stasis
In the second part of a three-part “Problematica,” Max examines why the development of punctuated equilibria did so little to upset Gould’s early adaptationist and progressivist ideas about evolution—at least at first
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Sixth months of the (De-) Extinct Blog
In which we look back at six months of new content on Extinct (with lots more to come!)
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How to Change Your Life Using Punctuated Equilibria
In the first part of a three-part installment of “Problematica,” Max examines what Stephen Jay Gould was up to on the eve of “Punctuated equilibria: an alternative to phyletic gradualism” (1972), and introduces an interpretive puzzle
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Stray Thoughts on Contingency Following the MBL-ASU History of Biology Seminar
In which Max reflects on the recent MBL-ASU History of Biology Seminar on historical contingency in biology
Read MoreStable Isotopes in Unstable Times: Harold Urey’s paleothermometer and the nature of proxy measurement
In which Joe Wilson describes the invention of the carbonate-oxygen paleothermometer, and explores what it means for our understanding of “proxy measurement”
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