Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Physics always obeys equations. Biology does not. Sometimes... but not always! There is scarcely any formula in biology that is 100% true. In biology, there is no precise definition of life, species, individual, gene, allele, inheritance, intelligence, sentience, function, or fitness.
This isn't simply because biology is complex, it's because biology has agency and the ability to make choices. These choices are not an illusion; it's the only reason life can flourish. This simple fact, backed by formal mathematical proofs, has vast implications for the very definition of science itself.
In this talk at the American Scientific Affiliation in Boston, Perry Marshall unpacks the vast implications of this.
Physics always obeys equations. Biology does not. Sometimes... but not always! There is scarcely any formula in biology that is 100% true. In biology, there is no precise definition of life, species, individual, gene, allele, inheritance, intelligence, sentience, function, or fitness.
This isn't simply because biology is complex, it's because biology has agency and the ability to make choices. These choices are not an illusion; it's the only reason life can flourish. This simple fact, backed by formal mathematical proofs, has vast implications for the very definition of science itself.
In this talk at the American Scientific Affiliation in Boston, Perry Marshall unpacks the vast implications of this.
