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Episode 036: Intentional Evolution

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Interviewer(s)

Art Woods, Marty Martin

Interviewee(s)

Scott Turner

Description

Is there a role for agency in evolution? Do organismal efforts to maintain homeostasis represent a form of biological intentionality?

On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Scott Turner, a physiologist and emeritus professor of Biology from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Scott’s book, Purpose and Desire, discusses how holes in standard evolutionary theory might be productively filled by the concept of homeostasis. Scott argues that by attempting to maintain metabolism and exporting entropy to the environment, organisms manifest a form of agency that can affect the evolution of their lineages. His book and ideas have met with some criticism, and in the show, we confront him about whether his position is subtle intelligent design theory.

Cover photo: Bernard Dupont (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Date Published

3-2020

Language

eng

Run Time

1 hour, 38 minutes, 47 seconds

Digital File Format

audio/mp3

Document Type

Podcast

Episode 036: Intentional Evolution

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