“Evolutionary Theory and the Unification of Life Sciences in the 21st Century” – Eva Jablonka, Prof. Emeritus, Tel Aviv University
April 10 @ 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Friday, April 10, 2026
4:00 – 6:00 PM
Royce Hall 306
RSVP HERE
Join us on April 10, 2026 for a colloquium with Eva Jablonka, hosted by the UCLA Department of Philosophy. The talk will take place from 4:00 – 6:00 PM in Royce 306.
Evolutionary Theory and the Unification of Life Sciences in the 21st Century
I argue that the changes in our current view of evolutionary theory are leading to a new unification of life-sciences, which is occurring, seemingly paradoxically, within the context of their increased specialization and fracturing. Unlike the modern evolutionary synthesis of the 20th century (the MS) which claimed that selection is the only direction-giving process in evolution, the current synthesis incorporates not only new biological domains but also processes that were excluded by the MS. I consider two aspects of this unification: the first is the synthesis between development and heredity, which involves enrichment of both notions and is leading to important changes in our view of evolution, discussed within the framework of the extended evolutionary synthesis (EES). The second aspect is the study of mental processes stemming from research into the evolutionary origins and effects of consciousness. I argue that these developments enable the construction of a unifying evolutionary framework for the expanding domain of 21st century life sciences, which is becoming based on broader and richer views of heredity, adaptation and cognition.
Eva Jablonka is Professor emerita, The Cohn Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Ideas, Tel-Aviv University. At present, she is a visiting fellow in the Simons Center for Systems Biology in the IAS, Princeton.
RSVP HERE
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