地球灾变的生物学意义——《祸从天降——恐龙灭绝之谜》一书读后

The Biological Sigmificance of Earth Cataclysm Synopsis

本文就许靖华教授《祸从天降——恐龙灭绝之谜》一书,讨论地球灾变的生物学意义。作者认为:地球灾变事实的发现没有否定,而是补充和丰富自然选择理论,达尔文主义强调生物进化的渐变性和连续性;生物进化的灾变说强调生物进化的间断性;这是两种不同的自然观。但是,不能认为它们是相互否定的,而是相互补充的。生物学研究既把渐变论作为工作哲学,又把灾变论作为工作哲学,前者适用于生物进化的渐变时期,后者适用于生物进化的灾变(环境危机)时期。

The paper discasses the biological significance of earth cataclysm-the theme of Professor J. K. Hsü's book Misfortunes Come Suddenly: The Enigma Dinosaur's Extinction. The author believes that the discovery of the facts of earth cataclysm has not denied, but complemented and enriched the theory of natural selection. Darwinism emphasizes the gradualness and continuity of biological evolution, while catastrophism puts its stress on the discontinuity of biological evolution. They are two different kinds of natural outlook. However. We cannot take them as mutually negative, but as mutually complementary. Biological research uses not only gradualism but also catastrophism as its functioning philosophy. The former can be applied to the period of gradual change in biological evolution, while the latter can be applied to the peviod of cataclysm (envirommental crisis) in biological evolution.