World Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Stephen Jay Gould

スティーブン・ジェイ・グールド

Sutīben Jei Gūrudo

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1941-09-10 (New York City)
Died
2002-05-20 (New York City) age 60
Nationality
United States
Languages
English, French, German, Russian, Italian
Religion
Agnostic
Residence History
Queens, New York → Bayside, Queens → Cambridge, Massachusetts → New York City

Career

Occupations
paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, historian of science, popular science author
Active Years
1963-2002
Affiliations
Harvard University, American Museum of Natural History, New York University
Memberships
President of the Paleontological Society (1985-1986), President of the Society for the Study of Evolution (1990-1991), President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1999-2001)
Influenced By
Charles Darwin, George Gaylord Simpson
Influenced
Niles Eldredge, Richard Lewontin

Education

Antioch College
Geology and Philosophy
Degree: BA
Period: 1959-1963
Year of Graduation: 1963
Country: United States
Double major in geology and philosophy
University of Leeds
Visiting undergraduate
Period: 1960年代初頭
Country: United Kingdom
Columbia University
Geology
Degree: PhD
Year of Graduation: 1967
Country: United States
Thesis: Pleistocene and Recent History of the Subgenus Poecilozonites

Awards

Darwin–Wallace Medal
2008
Organization: Linnean Society of London
Result: 受賞 (punctuated equilibrium)
Paleontological Society Medal
2002
Organization: Paleontological Society
Result: 受賞
St. Louis Literary Award
1994
Result: 受賞
Sue Tyler Friedman Medal
1989
Result: 受賞
Golden Plate Award
1982
Organization: American Academy of Achievement
Result: 受賞
Charles Schuchert Award
1975
Result: 受賞
Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science
1983
Result: 受賞 (1983, 1990)

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Ontogeny and Phylogeny

1977 Evolutionary developmental biology

Explores the relationship between ontogeny and phylogeny, emphasizing heterochrony.

heterochronyevolutionary developmental biology

The Panda's Thumb

1980 Essay collection

Collection of popular science essays from Natural History magazine.

evolutiondiversity

The Mismeasure of Man

1981 History of science

Critiques craniometry and IQ testing, opposing biological determinism.

racismintelligencehistory of science

Wonderful Life

1989 Paleontology

Discusses Burgess Shale fossils, emphasizing contingency in evolution.

Cambrian explosioncontingency

The Structure of Evolutionary Theory

2002 Evolutionary theory

Comprehensive treatise on modern evolutionary theory.

punctuated equilibriummultilevel selection

Bibliography

  • Ontogeny and Phylogeny (1977)
  • Ever Since Darwin (1977)
  • The Panda's Thumb (1980)
  • The Mismeasure of Man (1981)
  • Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes (1983)
  • The Flamingo's Smile (1985)
  • Time's Arrow, Time's Cycle (1987)
  • Wonderful Life (1989)
  • The Structure of Evolutionary Theory (2002)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Clear and engaging essay styleRich in metaphorsInterdisciplinary
Recurring Motifs
Contingency in evolutionScience and societyBaseball

Health

  • Peritoneal mesothelioma
    1982年診断、2年間治療
    Recovered after two years; wrote famous essay on statistics
  • Lung adenocarcinoma
    2002年2月診断、5月20日死亡
    Stage IV, metastatic to brain, liver, spleen; cause of death

Legacy

Major contributions to evolutionary biology via punctuated equilibrium. Influential popular science author. Proposed NOMA for science and religion.

Academic Societies

  • National Academy of Sciences

Archives

  • Stanford University Libraries

In Popular Culture

  • Voiced himself on The Simpsons

Quotes

  • The Median Isn't the Message
    Source: Discover magazine (1985)
  • Science and religion are non-overlapping magisteria
    Source: Rocks of Ages (1999)

Trivia

  • Inspired by T. rex fossil at age 5
  • Lifelong New York Yankees fan
  • Advocated medical marijuana