Children of time: the extended synthesis and major metaphors of evolution

Brooks, Daniel RAgosta, Salvatore J

It is time for an expansion and enrichment of evolutionary theory. The "back to the future" proposal contained herein is based on three postulates: 1) Neo-Darwinism is too impoverished for this task; 2) its predecessor, Darwinism, contained the necessary breadth of vision and metaphor to be the basis for an inclusive and unifying theory of biology; and 3) the necessary framework for this new stage in the evolution of evolutionary theory is largely in place. We make our case through the use of a number of metaphorical dualisms designed to help focus discussions toward a more cooperative and productive approach to the study of living systems. Along the way, we suggest a number of self-induced paradoxes in neo-Darwinian accounts of evolution that are resolved by our perspective.

1. Nature of the conditions
2. Information
3. Division of labor
4. Simultaneity
5. Extended synthesis
6. Nature of the organism
7. Function
8. Metaphors
9. Time, sequency
10. Evolutionary transitions
11. Ecological hierarchy
12. Darwinism
13. Compensatory changes
14. Genealogical hierarchy
15. Metabolism
16. Thermodynamics
17. Complexity
18. History
19. Cohesion
20. Cooperation
21. Self-organization
22. Space