"Punctuated equilibrium" is a phrase used in biology to describe how a species doesn't change much over a long time, but then suddenly undergoes a rapid change in a short amount of time. It's like a long period of stability interrupted by a sudden burst of significant change.
Full definition
The evolutionary theory
of Punctuated Equilibrium seems to apply to the human consciousness as well as biological adaptation.
While some scientists believe there was indeed an explosion of diversity (the so - called
punctuated equilibrium theory elaborated by Nils Eldredge the late Stephen J. Gould - Models In Paleobiology, 1972), others believe that such rapid acceleration of evolution is not possible; they posit that there was an extended period of evolutionary progression of all the animal groups, the evidence for which is lost in the all but nonexistent precambrian fossil record.
In an often quoted remark, Gould stated, «Since we
proposed punctuated equilibria to explain trends, it is infuriating to be quoted again and again by creationists — whether through design or stupidity, I do not know — as admitting that the fossil record includes no transitional forms.
One of the findings that stands out, he says, is that pop music shows a pattern from biological evolution known
as punctuated equilibrium, in which periods of gradual change are separated by explosions of complexity.
Punctuated Equilibrium Meets Cancer: Big Promise Requires Big Change Joseph R. Biden, Jr. 47th Vice President of the United States Co-Chair, Board of Directors BidenCancer Initiative
Those who subscribe to
punctuated equilibrium say the fossil record is proof their theory concerning speciation is the correct one.
Each new wave of innovation — microwaves, defense, silicon, disk drives, PCs, Internet, therapeutics, — was
like punctuated equilibrium — just when you thought the wave had run its course into stasis, there emerged a sudden shift and radical change into a new family of technology.
- It is irrational to doubt the «God of Abraham» -
Punctuated Equilibrium proves Jesus - We don't entirely understand x, therefore God did it with magic.
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Punctuated equilibrium originated as a logical extension of Ernst Mayr's concept of genetic revolutions by allopatric and especially peripatric speciation as applied to the fossil record.»
Chad, not only have I watched the video, but I understand
what punctuated equilibrium «is» and how it fits in perfectly with our current understanding of the evolutionary process.
It's off the mark at every step (which I guess is why allopatric speciation remains the ONLY theory on
how punctuated equilibrium occurs): — it requires that a mutation be present in the population and not get weeded out, which is not what is seen at all (gene pools wobble about the genetic mean for long periods of time).
The acceptance of
punctuated equilibrium put to death the then prevailing thought that gradual change was the evolutionary mechanism of speciation (Darwinian phyletic gradualism, which had held sway for > 100 years, was utterly debunked)
About this Book: Eternal Ephemera: Adaptation and the Origin of Species from the Nineteenth Century
Through Punctuated Equilibria and Beyond Niles Eldredge Columbia University Press, 2015
Whether you call it niche construction or techno - physio evolution, it is
ultimately punctuated equilibrium by a different name, with culture rather than catastrophe providing the new niches.
Interestingly, the results I got were very similar to punctuated equilibrium [an evolutionary theory championed by Niles Eldridge and Stephen Jay Gould].
«This study supports the idea that
punctuated equilibria exist but also suggests a limit to its overall effect on genetic change,» comments Don Waller, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
But because it posits that evolution happens in bursts,
punctuated equilibrium goes against the notion that evolution inches forward in tiny steps guided by natural selection.
Punctuated equilibrium logically extends from Ernst Mayr's concept of genetic revolutions by allopatric and especially peripatric speciation as observed in the fossil record.
The Michigan State researchers reported in the June 21 issue of Science that their observations support a provocative evolutionary theory
called punctuated equilibrium, often known by its nickname «punk eek.»
«Since we
proposed punctuated equilibria to explain trends, it is infuriating to be quoted again and again by creationists - whether through design or stupidity, I do not know - as admitting that the fossil record includes no transitional forms.
Argumentum ad hominem would be if I said, «Chad's wrong
about punctuated equilibrium being evidence for god because he's just an inbred, backwoods, bible - thumpin» moron.»
Some Creationists claim that the hypothesis of
punctuated equilibrium was proposed (by Eldredge and Gould) to explain gaps in the fossil record.
If you'd like a real reference to understand PE, I'd suggest Gould's «The Structure of Evolutionary Theory,» particularly «Chapter 9:
Punctuated Equilibrium and the Validation of Macroevolutionary Theory.»
«For instance, several years ago Gould and a colleague proposed a new hypothesis, called «
punctuated equilibrium,» in a desperate bid to explain away the fossil gaps.
Punctuated equilibria, as far as I'm caught up with it, has not had much impact.
... Paleontologists usually attribute these differences to a mix of slow evolution («gradualism») and rapid evolution (or «
punctuated equilibrium»: sudden bursts of evolution followed by stasis), in combination with the immigration of new species from the as - yet - undiscovered places where they first arose.
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Punctuated equilibria: an alternative to phyletic gradualism.
stasis and rapid change (
punctuated equilibrium) is a recognized fact.