It’s rare that researchers question theories that make up the backbone of whole fields. But in Evolution Evolving, Kevin Lala and four other eminent evolutionary biologists do just that. Their philosophically informed discussion challenges the textbook version of evolutionary theory, known as the modern synthesis, which has been regarded by many scientists as sacrosanct since its conception in the mid-twentieth century. This shift in thinking — which amounts to a new way of unifying the life sciences — is long overdue.
The modern synthesis contends that the only process that leads to evolutionary adaptations is the gradual natural selection of DNA mutations, which arise at random. Lala and colleagues argue that how an organism develops also plays a central part in evolution, not just natural selection. They have been championing this view, which they call the extended evolutionary synthesis, for more than a decade … and it is hotly debated in the field.
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