Editing Stephen Jay Gould (section)

===As a public figure===
Gould became widely known through his popular essays on [[evolution]] in the ''[[Natural History (magazine)|Natural History]]'' magazine. His essays were published in a series entitled ''This View of Life'' (a phrase from the concluding paragraph of [[Charles Darwin]]'s ''[[On the Origin of Species|Origin of Species]]'') from January 1974 to January 2001, amounting to a continuous publication of 300 essays.<ref name=tatt/> Many of his essays were reprinted in collected volumes that became [[bestseller|bestselling books]] such as ''[[Ever Since Darwin]]'' and ''[[The Panda's Thumb (book)|The Panda's Thumb]]'', ''[[Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes]]'', and ''[[The Flamingo's Smile]]''.

A passionate advocate of evolutionary theory, Gould wrote prolifically on the subject, trying to communicate his understanding of contemporary evolutionary biology to a wide audience. A recurring theme in his writings is the history and development of pre-evolutionary and [[History of evolutionary thought|evolutionary thought]]. He was also an enthusiastic baseball fan and [[sabermetrician]] (analyst of baseball statistics), and made frequent reference to the sport in his essays. Many of his baseball essays were anthologized in his posthumously published book ''Triumph and Tragedy in Mudville'' (2003).<ref name="mudville"/>

Although a self-described Darwinist, Gould's emphasis was less [[gradualism|gradualist]] and [[reductionism|reductionist]] than most [[neo-Darwinism|neo-Darwinists]]. He fiercely opposed many aspects of [[sociobiology]] and its intellectual descendant [[evolutionary psychology]]. He devoted considerable time to fighting against [[creationism]], [[creation science]], and [[intelligent design]]. Most notably, Gould provided expert testimony against the equal-time creationism law in ''[[McLean v. Arkansas]]''. Gould later developed the term "non-overlapping magisteria" (NOMA) to describe how, in his view, science and religion should not comment on each other's realm. Gould went on to develop this idea in some detail, particularly in the books ''Rocks of Ages'' (1999) and ''The Hedgehog, the Fox, and the Magister's Pox'' (2003). In a 1982 essay for ''Natural History'' Gould wrote:

{{blockquote|Our failure to discern a universal good does not record any lack of insight or ingenuity, but merely demonstrates that nature contains no moral messages framed in human terms. Morality is a subject for philosophers, theologians, students of the humanities, indeed for all thinking people. The answers will not be read passively from nature; they do not, and cannot, arise from the data of science. The factual state of the world does not teach us how we, with our powers for good and evil, should alter or preserve it in the most ethical manner.<ref>Gould, S. J. (1982). [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_nonmoral.html "Nonmoral Nature".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117022650/http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_nonmoral.html |date=November 17, 2015 }} ''Natural History'' 91 (Feb.): 19–26.</ref>}}

Gould also spoke out against creationist misuse of his work and theory, especially with respect to how his theory of punctuated equilibrium relates to the presence of transitional fossils or forms:

{{blockquote|It is infuriating to be quoted again and again by creationists—whether through design or stupidity, I do not know—as admitting that the fossil record includes no transitional forms. Transitional forms are generally lacking at the species level but are abundant between larger groups. The evolution from reptiles to
mammals . . . is well documented.<ref name="Evolution as fact and theory">Gould, S. J. (1981). [https://wise.fau.edu/~tunick/courses/knowing/gould_fact-and-theory.html "Evolution as fact and theory".] ''Discover'' '''2''' (May): 34–37.</ref>}}

An [[A Scientific Dissent From Darwinism|anti-evolution petition]] drafted by the [[Discovery Institute]] inspired the [[National Center for Science Education]] to create a pro-evolution counterpart called "[[Project Steve]]," which is named in Gould's honor.<ref>[[National Center for Science Education]] (2003). [http://ncse.com/taking-action/list-steves "Project Steve."] www.ncse.com. Retrieved August 25, 2015.</ref> In 2011 the executive council of the [[Committee for Skeptical Inquiry|Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI)]] selected Gould for inclusion in CSI's "Pantheon of Skeptics" created to remember the legacy of deceased CSI fellows and their contributions to the cause of scientific skepticism.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Pantheon of Skeptics|url=http://www.csicop.org/about/the_pantheon_of_skeptics|website=CSI|publisher=[[Committee for Skeptical Inquiry]]|access-date=April 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131054129/http://www.csicop.org/about/the_pantheon_of_skeptics|archive-date=January 31, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

Gould also became a noted public face of science, often appearing on television. In 1984 Gould received his own ''[[Nova (American TV series)|NOVA]]'' special on [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]].<ref>[[PBS]] (1984). "Stephen Jay Gould: This View of Life". NOVA. December 18.</ref> Other appearances included interviews on [[CNN]]'s ''[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]]'' and ''[[Talkback Live]]'',<ref>CNN. [http://collection.cnn.com/content/clip/370179205_x01.do Talkback Live] August 9, 1996; [http://collection.cnn.com/content/clip/370192151_x01.do Crossfire] August 17, 1999.</ref> [[NBC]]'s ''[[Today (NBC program)|The Today Show]]'', and regular appearances on PBS's [[Charlie Rose (TV series)|''Charlie Rose'']] show. Gould was also a guest in all seven episodes of the Dutch talk series ''[[A Glorious Accident]]'', in which he appeared with his close friend [[Oliver Sacks]].<ref>Kayzer, Wim (1993) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnpoLqNklL8&index=5&list=PL267ZaxyqR0ueMV5oBgIPzMd9MZFoSvxf ''Een schitterend ongeluk''.].  Netherlands: VPRO. See also Oliver Sacks (2007). [https://archive.org/details/richnessoflifees0000goul Forward.] In Steven Rose, ed. ''The Richness of Life''. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, p. xi.</ref>

Gould was featured prominently as a guest in [[Ken Burns]]'s [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]] documentary ''[[Baseball (documentary)|Baseball]]'', as well as [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS's]] ''[[Evolution (TV series)|Evolution]]'' series. Gould was also on the Board of Advisers to the influential [[Children's Television Workshop]] television show ''[[3-2-1 Contact]]'', where he made frequent guest appearances.<ref>PBS (1987). ''3-2-1 Contact.'' "Dinosaur Detectives" October 27. "Mammals: Rats and Bats" November 2.</ref>

Since 2013, Gould has been listed on the Advisory Council of the [[National Center for Science Education]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ncse.com/about/advisory-council |title=Advisory Council |website=ncse.com |date=July 15, 2008 |publisher=[[National Center for Science Education]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810112828/https://ncse.com/about/advisory-council |archive-date=August 10, 2013 |access-date=October 30, 2018}}</ref>

In 1997, he voiced a cartoon version of himself on the television series ''[[The Simpsons]]''. In the episode "[[Lisa the Skeptic]]", Lisa finds a skeleton that many people believe is an [[Apocalypse|apocalyptic]] angel. Lisa contacts Gould and asks him to test the skeleton's [[DNA]]. The fossil is discovered to be a marketing gimmick for a new mall.<ref>[[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]]. ''[[The Simpsons]]''. "[[Lisa the Skeptic]]", November 23, 1997. [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/audio/gould_simpsons-lisa-the-skeptic.mp3 Audio clip.]</ref> During production, the only phrase Gould objected to was a line in the script that introduced him as the "world's most brilliant paleontologist".<ref name="Scully">Scully, Mike (2006). ''The Simpsons''. Season 9 DVD Commentary for "Lisa the Skeptic". DVD. 20th Century Fox.</ref> In 2002, the show paid tribute to Gould after his death, dedicating the [[Poppa's Got a Brand New Badge|season 13 finale]] to his memory. Gould had died two days before the episode aired.