Stephen Jay Gould, "What does the dreaded 'E'
word mean anyway? A Reverie for the Opening of the New Hayden Planetarium"
and:
For more assignment ideas involving this essay,
please visit the Gould
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On Science versus Common Sense
In his essay "What Does the Dreaded ‘E' Word Mean, Anyway,"
Stephen Jay Gould explores the changing connotations of the term "evolution."
Gould spends much of the essay contrasting the differing ideas of evolution
developed by the natural sciences and the physical sciences, in particular
astronomy. He is also concerned, however, with the way that the idea of
evolution has taken root in the common-sense of non-scientists. For your
first paper, please write an essay that responds to the following question:
What, in your view, is the appropriate relation between scientific
knowledge and common sense–the attitudes and beliefs of ordinary
non-specialists?
As you develop your response, you may wish to consider some of the following
questions if they prove helpful to you. Please do not try to answer them
all.
What is "common sense"? Is it the same thing as reason, logic,
or "good sense"? Is common sense sometimes the same as "prejudice"?
Are some commonsensical ideas actually irrational or superstitious? Using
Gould's essay as a guide, please identify some of the factors that have
shaped our common-sense ideas about subjects like the natural world, the
place of humans in the scheme of things, and the importance of technological
and social progress. How does science differ from common sense? Is science
always "right" when it conflicts with common sense? Can common
sense ever be "right" when "science" is wrong? Can
science ever be "wrong"? How does your thinking confirm, complicate,
or contradict Gould's?
An essay like this one requires you to do two things at once. First, you
need to make a point of your own, instead of simply summarizing the argument
presented by the author. Second, you should draw on Gould's essay for
ideas and examples that will support to the point or points you are making.
Please try to make detailed and careful use of the information that Gould
provides you. Use his thinking to stimulate yours.
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Gould and Pollan: Biotechnology and the Evolutionary Process
In "What does the dreaded 'E' word mean, anyway?" Stephen Jay Gould provides
an extended discussion of what the word "evolution" means in the life
sciences. In "Playing God in the Garden," Michael Pollan discusses genetic
engineering and the invention of the NewLeaf potato. For this essay, I
would like you to consider the relationship between genetic engineering
and evolution as Gould defines it. Does genetic engineering disrupt the
evolutionary process Gould describes? Does it participate in that evolutionary
process? Does Gould's argument suggest that we should be concerned about
genetic engineering or that there is nothing to worry about? That is,
does the definition of evolution used in the life sciences put to rest
the concerns Pollan has raised about genetic engineering or does it heighten
those concerns? Write an essay where you consider the relationship between
evolution and genetic engineering.
Richard E. Miller, Rutgers University, Spring 2000
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Gould and de Waal: Evolution and Humankind's Place in the Cosmos
In "What does the dreaded 'E' would mean anyway?" Stephen Jay
Gould offers two competing definitions of evolution. Can either of Gould's
definitions accommodate de Waal's vision of the evolutionary process?
In the end, does it matter how one thinks about the evolutionary process?
Is there a necessary connection between how one thinks about evolution
and how one understands humankind's place in the cosmos?
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Power, Civilization, and the Self (Assignment 2)
In his essay, Stephen Jay Gould tells a “fable” about how woolly mammoths may have descended from elephants inhabiting Siberia (328). The story illustrates the “mechanism” of genealogical change (or “evolution”): specific traits that occur randomly in a species may—by enabling individuals possessing the traits to survive a change in climate—become dominant characteristics of the species. In the development of the mammoths, a trait of marginal importance (hairiness) in a mild climate becomes a means of survival in a cold climate. In a five-page paper, address the following question: What impact, if any, could marginality (as Boyarin experiences it) have on the genetic “evolution” of the human species?
You may choose to focus on either future evolution or on human development in the past. Either way (but especially if you choose a historical perspective), read very carefully what Gould writes in his penultimate paragraph.
Anthony Alms, Rutgers University, Fall 2005
From Power, Civilization, and the Self.
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Power, Civilization, and the Self (Assignment 3)
Alexander Stille uses the Ganges River as a focus for religion, science (or technology), politics, and international cooperation in the face of imminent environmental disaster. If the river is to have a “next life”—at least for humankind—it seems there will have to be changes made in local religious and scientific practices, as well as in local and international politics. Drawing on ideas and concepts from Stille, Gould, and Boyarin, discuss the following: How might globalization affect the relationships between religion, science, and politics in the Third World?
Anthony Alms, Rutgers University, Fall 2005
From Power, Civilization, and the Self.
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