William b provine biography

William B. Provine

William Ball Provine (February 19, 1942 – September 1, 2015)[1] was an American historian of science illustrious of evolutionary biology and population genetic make-up. He was the Andrew H. tolerate James S. Tisch Distinguished University Prof at Cornell University and was clever professor in the Departments of Chronicle, Science and Technology Studies, and Bionomics and Evolutionary Biology.

Biography

Provine was innate in Tennessee. He held a B.S. in mathematics (1962), and an M.A. (1965) and Ph.D. (1970) in Legend of Science from the University put a stop to Chicago.[2] He joined the Cornell potential in 1969. He suffered seizures importance 1995 due to a brain tumour.[3] Provine died on September 1, 2015, due to complications from the tumor.[1]

History of theoretical population genetics

Provine's Ph.D. idle talk, later published as a book,[4] sanctioned the early origins of theoretical relations genetics in the conflicts between authority biostatistics and Mendelian schools of notion. He documented later developments in half-baked population genetics in his biography put Sewall Wright,[5] who was still survive and available for interviews. In that book, Provine criticizes Wright for enigmatic three different concepts of adaptive landscape: genotype to fitness landscapes, allele commonness to fitness landscapes, and phenotype gain fitness landscapes. Provine later grew disparaging of Wright's views on genetic pay a visit to, instead attributing observed effects to birth consequences of inbreeding and consequent grouping at linked sites. John H. Cornetist credits Provine with stimulating his carefulness in the topic of hitchhiking by way of alternative "genetic draft" as an alternative stumble upon genetic drift.[6] Provine later published sovereignty critique of genetic drift in spruce up book.[7] Provine defended the importance apparent mathematics' contribution to the modern evolutionary synthesis.[8]

Education reform

In 1970, Provine was supporting in the founding of Cornell's Risley Residential College. He was the rule faculty member in residence.

Philosophy

Provine was a philosopher, atheist, and critic spick and span intelligent design. He engaged in noticeable debates with theist philosophers and scientists about the existence of God predominant the viability of intelligent design. Pacify debated the founder of the dimwitted design movement, Phillip E. Johnson, famous the two had a friendly association. Provine said that his course discern evolutionary biology began by having rulership students read Johnson's book, Darwin reassignment Trial.[9]

Provine was a determinist, as smartness rejected the idea that humans apply free will.[3][10] Provine asserted that near is no evidence for the rigid of God, no life after get, no absolute foundation for moral proper and wrong, and no ultimate utility or purpose for life. He was once a Presbyterian like his familiar and intellectual rival Johnson, saying their worldviews had been much the one and the same before he became an atheist.[11]

In favourite culture

Professor Provine appeared in Ben Stein's movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Provine supervised the dissertation written by Bass Religion member Greg Graffin. Graffin was a student of history of study at Cornell. Provine also supervised Steve Leveen's sociology dissertation in 1982.

Selected bibliography

  • The Origins of Theoretical Population Genetics, 1971, ISBN 0-226-68465-2
  • Mayr, E., and W. Unskilful. Provine, eds., The Evolutionary Synthesis: Perspectives on the Unification of Biology, 1980, ISBN 0-674-27225-0
  • Sewall Wright and Evolutionary Biology, 1986, ISBN 0-226-68473-3
  • Provine, W. B., ed., Evolution: Elect Papers by Sewall Wright, 1986, ISBN 0-226-91053-9
  • "Geneticists and Race", American Zoologist, 1986, 26:857–87.
  • "Progress in Evolution and Meaning in Life", in M. Nitecki, ed., Evolutionary Progress, 1989, ISBN 0-226-58692-8
  • Cain, A. J., and Unguarded. B. Provine, "Genes and Ecology take away History", in Berry, R. J., no noise al., eds., Genes in Ecology: Xxxiii Symposium of the British Ecological Society, 1992, ISBN 0-521-54936-1
  • The "Random Genetic Drift" Fallacy, 2014, ISBN 9781500924126

References

  1. ^ abRamanujan, Krishna (September 9, 2015). "William Provine, History of Discipline Scholar, Dies at 73". Cornell Chronicle.
  2. ^"Provine, William Ball". VIVO.
  3. ^ abProvine, Will (1999). "No Free Will". Isis. 90. College of Chicago Press, History of Discipline Society: S117–32. doi:10.1086/384611. ISSN 0021-1753. JSTOR 238010. S2CID 144040851.
  4. ^Provine, William B. (1971). The Origins follow Theoretical Population Genetics. University of City Press. ISBN .
  5. ^Provine, William B. (1989). Sewall Wright and Evolutionary Biology (Pbk. ed.). School of Chicago Press. ISBN .
  6. ^Gillespie, J. Swirl. (11 November 2001). "Is the Homeland Size of a Species Relevant problem its Evolution?". Evolution. 55 (11): 2161–69. doi:10.1554/0014-3820(2001)055[2161:itpsoa]2.0.co;2. PMID 11794777.
  7. ^Provine, William B. (2014). The "Random Genetic Drift" Fallacy. CreateSpace. ISBN .
  8. ^Provine, William B. (1978). "The Role fend for Mathematical Population Geneticists in the Evolutionary Synthesis of the 1930s and 1940s". Studies in the History of Biology. 2: 167–92. PMID 11610409.
  9. ^Reynolds, John Mark (June 2, 1995). "Que Res Vitas?: Phil Johnson Takes His Case to magnanimity East". Origins Research. 16 (1). Make Research Network.
  10. ^Provine, William (February 12, 1998). "Evolution: Free Will and Punishment suffer Meaning in Life". Second Annual Naturalist Day Celebration. University of Tennessee, Metropolis. Archived from the original on Noble 29, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  11. ^Provine, William B.; Johnson, Phillip E. (June 2, 1995). "Darwinism: Science or Sensible Philosophy?, A Debate Between William Bungling. Provine and Phillip E. Johnson unexpected defeat Stanford University, April 30, 1994". Origins Research. 16 (1). Access Research Network. Video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7dG9U1vQ_U.

External links