Acquired Traits Revisited | Zendy

William D. Stansfield | Zendy

AI Assistant Blog Pricing

Home ZAIA Blog

Open Access

Acquired Traits Revisited

Author(s) -

William D. Stansfield

Publication year - 2011

Publication title -

the american biology teacher

Language(s) - English

Resource type - Journals

SCImago Journal Rank - 0.277

H-Index - 30

eISSN - 1938-4211

pISSN - 0002-7685

DOI - 10.1525/abt.2011.73.2.6

Subject(s) - heredity , biology , context (archaeology) , inheritance (genetic algorithm) , conceptual change , evolutionary biology , offspring , epistemology , cognitive science , genetics , psychology , philosophy , pregnancy , paleontology , gene

Most biology texts villify Lamarck's concept of “inheritance of acquired characters” and leave the impression that all acquired characters are never transmitted to offspring. However, recent research indicates that this is not true! Some “acquired” traits are inherited. I profile some of these striking cases and their importance for evolution and for understanding a broader epigenetic context for heredity and ontogeny (the emerging field of “evo-devo”). Further, I discuss how such cases, even considered as exceptions, contribute to understanding the nature of science, both the role of general rules in biology and the occurrence of conceptual change, or paradigm shifts.

The content you want is available to Zendy users.

Already have an account? Click here to sign in.

Having issues? You can contact us here

Accelerating Research