There are two separate issues here, neither of which concerns the fact of evolution. First, there is the Gould/Lewontin position that not all traits are a direct result of natural selection. They occur because they are linked genetically to other traits that were naturally selected (they adapted the term 'spandrel' to refer to traits that themselves conveyed no fitness advantage). This position does not deny that natural selection through propagation fitness is the main mechanism driving evolution; simply that some traits are fitness neutral. It's my impression that this is no longer particularly controversial in evolutionary biology.
The second issue (the one that Jerry Fodor is riding) is controversial. Again, it does not deny the fact of evolution. What it does question is the mechanism driving it. This position posits that natural (sexual) selection from a pool of random variability is a minor factor, and that the main mechanism is genetic drift or some such molecular process. As usual, few biologists in either camp claim that one mechanism is exclusive; the main argument concerns which one is the main determinant of evolution. I suspect that many books will be written before the dustup settles. -- The best argument against intelligent design is that people believe in it. * PAUL K. BRANDON [EMAIL PROTECTED] * * Psychology Department 507-389-6217 * * 23 Armstrong Hall Minnesota State University, Mankato * * http://krypton.mnsu.edu/~pkbrando/ * ---
