The Structure of Evolutionary Theory The Structure of Evolutionary Theory The Structure of Evolutionary Theory (2002) is Harvard paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould's technical book on macroevolution and the historical development of evolutionary theory. The book was twenty years in the making, published just two months before Gould's death. Aimed primarily at professionals, the volume is divided into two parts. The first is a historical study of classical evolutionary thought, drawing extensively upon primary documents; the second is a constructive critique of the modern synthesis, and presents a case for an interpretation of biological evolution based largely on hierarchical selection, and the theory of punctuated equilibrium
Evolution as fact and theory their various forms to provide explanations of observed patterns in relation to their evolutionary history and biology. The neutral theory of molecular evolution is used to study evolution as a null model against which tests for natural selection can be applied. The following sections provide specific quotable references from evolutionary biologists and philosophers of science demonstrating some of the different perspectives on evolution as fact and theory. "Fact" is commonly used to refer to the observable changes in organisms' traits over generations while the word "theory" is reserved for the mechanisms that cause these changes: Other commentators – focusing on