77 - Sean B. Carroll - Revolutionising Our Understanding of Evo Biology

Note: Sean B. Carroll the evolutionary biologist and Sean M. Carroll the quantum physicist are both equally awe-inspiring. They are not the same person. Sean’s new book A Series of Fortunate Events: Chance and the Making of the Planet, Life, and You (2020) can be found here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fortunate-Events-Chance-Making-Planet/dp/0691218900/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1611219491&sr=1-1 Sean’s classic book Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo and the Making of the Animal Kingdom (2005) can be found here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Endless-Forms-Most-Beautiful-Science/dp/1849160481 His book and film The Serengeti Rules: The Quest to Discover How Life Works can be found here: https://www.seanbcarroll.com/the-serengeti-rules#:~:text=In%20The%20Serengeti%20Rules%2C%20award,the%20planet%20we%20depend%20upon. For more on Sean: https://www.seanbcarroll.com/ Follow Sean on Twitter @SeanBiolCarroll Further References Evo-Devo (Despacito Biology Parody) | A Capella Science - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydqReeTV_vk The Hox gene family synteny on chromosome 3 of Drosophila melanogaster... | Download Scientific Diagram (researchgate.net): https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-Hox-gene-family-synteny-on-chromosome-3-of-Drosophila-melanogaster-and-the-segments_fig4_322698687 Introduction to Trilobites: https://www.trilobites.info/trilobite.htm Eye Development - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-and-molecular-biology/eye-development Timestamps 03:00 Misunderstandings about chance and probability 04:42 The precise timing of the asteroid strike 66 million years 07:48 Quantum fibrillation in the structure of DNA 14:34 Redundancy in the genome 17:50 How small the differences are that matter 20:51 The central insight of evo devo 28:38 Genetic switches and the choreography of development 32:13 It’s ain’t what you have, it’s the way that you use it. How diversity is achieved. 38:52 Homologous modular structures 43:20 Hox genes and the GPS coordinate system for the body 45:00 Williston’s law and why we have leeway to experiment 49:47 Polarities, how changes in the embryo create changes in the animal 55:02 Chance and the individual