modern synthesis

English

Etymology

Coined by British evolutionary biologist, philosopher, author (1887–1975) Julian Huxley in 1942, in his book Evolution: The Modern Synthesis.

Noun

modern synthesis (uncountable)

  1. (biology, sometimes capitalized) The mathematical framework unifying Darwinian evolution and Mendelian heredity into a coherent theory.
    • 2018, Julia D. Sigwart, What Species Mean: A User's Guide to the Units of Biodiversity‎, CRC Press, →ISBN:
      The core of the Modern Synthesis was to suggest that these observable processes, controlled by genes, explain the principles of variation and selection as laid out by Darwin: genetics underpin the mutability of species, and it is the nuts and bolts of descent with modification.
    • 2020, Martin Hähnel, editor, Aristotelian Naturalism: A Research Companion, Springer Nature, →ISBN, page 336:
      In other words, the Modern Synthesis simply abstracts away from the role of phenotypic variation. It explains evolutionary change solely in terms of genetic variation.
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