neo-lamarckism
Noun: A modern biological theory that revises and extends the ideas of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck. It emphasizes the role of environmental factors in directing evolutionary change and retains the core Lamarckian principle that characteristics acquired by an organism during its lifetime can be inherited by its offspring.
"Neo-Lamarckism" is used as a proper noun to name a specific school of thought in evolutionary biology. It is typically discussed in academic, historical, or philosophical contexts concerning the development of evolutionary theory. * The debate between neo-Lamarckism and neo-Darwinism was a significant chapter in the history of science. * Some 20th-century researchers advocated for neo-Lamarckism based on observations of apparent environmental adaptation.
- The scientist's work was often associated with due to her focus on the inheritance of environmentally induced traits.
- While largely supplanted by the modern synthesis, contributed to discussions on the mechanisms of evolution.
- His thesis explored the resurgence of interest in in light of new epigenetic research.
- Conceptual Contrast: The term is most powerfully used in contrast to "neo-Darwinism" or the "Modern Synthesis," which emphasize natural selection acting on random genetic variation as the primary driver of evolution, rejecting the inheritance of acquired characteristics.
- Historical Context: It often appears in analyses of the "eclipse of Darwinism" period (late 19th to early 20th century), when alternatives to strict Darwinian selection were actively explored.
- Lamarckism (n): The original theory proposed by Lamarck, positing that organisms evolve through the use and disuse of parts and the inheritance of acquired characteristics.
- Neo-Lamarckian (adj): Relating to or characteristic of neo-Lamarckism.
- The biologist proposed a neo-Lamarckian interpretation of the data.
- Neo-Lamarckian (n): A proponent of neo-Lamarckism.
- Lamarckian evolution (though this can refer to the original theory specifically)
- Inheritance of acquired characteristics (this names the central mechanism, not the full theory)
- Soft inheritance: A phrase describing the concept that genetic material can be altered by environmental influences or an organism's experiences, which is central to neo-Lamarckism.
- Epigenetics: A modern field of study concerning heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes to the underlying DNA sequence. While distinct, some discussions draw conceptual parallels between epigenetic inheritance and neo-Lamarckian ideas, though the mechanisms are fundamentally different.
- a modern Lamarckian theory emphasizing the importance of environmental factors in genetic changes and retaining the notion of the inheritance of acquired characters