-
Stephen Jay Gould was born on September 10, 1941, in New York City, the son of Leonard and Eleanor (Rosenberg) Gould. His father was a court reporter and part-time, unpaid naturalist (student of nature) Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html#ixzz5OBLonoIR
-
Gould saw his first dinosaur, a Tyrannosaurus rex, and decided that he was going to devote his life to the study of geologic (the history of the earth based on the record of rocks) periods. With the support of his mother, an artist, and three well-remembered elementary school teachers, Gould was reading about evolution by age eleven. Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html#ixzz5OBMBPV6D
-
In high school he encountered the ongoing battle between creationism and evolution as Darwin explained it. Darwin remained one of Gould's personal heroes. After a summer at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Gould received his education at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, graduating in 1963. Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html#ixzz5OBMXhCwm
-
Married Deborah Lee, an artist, on October 3, 1965, then left to take a job in 1966 at Antioch College as professor of geology. Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html#ixzz5OBN0LOwx
-
Completed his doctorate from Columbia and was promoted to associate professor. Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html
-
Becomes a full professor of geology. He also became curator of invertebrate paleontology at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology. At Harvard he widened his study of the speciation and evolution of land snails in the West Indies. Source: http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Gould-Stephen-Jay.html#ixzz5OBNmIeUZ
-
Gould opposed ideas in sociobiology. In 1975, Edward Osborne Wilson, a biologist at Harvard University, published Sociobiology: The New Synthesis, in which he argued that evolution could be used to explain human behaviors, such as altruism and aggression. Gould argued ideas in sociobiology promoted biological determinism. Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
Writes: Ontogeny and Phylogeny. Gould reconstructed a history of developmental biology and stressed the importance of development to evolutionary biology. Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
Gould and Lewonitn criticize many evolutionary biologists for relying solely on adaptive evolution as an explanation for morphological change, and for failing to consider other explanations, such as developmental constraints. Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
In 1981 Discover Magazine named Gould scientist of the year.
-
Gould was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer found in the lining of internal organs and which is linked to asbestos exposure.
-
Received the Medal of Excellence from Columbia University Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
Received the silver medal from the Zoological Society of London. Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
In 1995, Gould divorced Deborah Lee and married Rhonda Shearer.
-
Became the president of the American Association of the Advancement of Science. Source:https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/stephen-jay-gould-1941-2002
-
Gould dies after a second bout with cancer; this time a metastatic cancer of the lung.
-