175 | William Ratcliff on Multicellularity, Physics, and Evolution

175 | William Ratcliff on Multicellularity, Physics, and Evolution

We've talked about the very origin of life, but certain transitions along its subsequent history were incredibly important. Perhaps none more so than the transition from unicellular to multicellular organisms, which made possible an incredible diversity of organisms and structures. Will Ratcliff studies the physics that constrains multicellular structures, examines the minute changes in certain yeast cells that allows them to become multicellular, and does long-term evolution experiments in which multicellularity spontaneously evolves and grows. We can't yet create life from non-life, but we can reproduce critical evolutionary steps in the lab.

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William Ratcliff received his Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior at the University of Minnesota. He is currently Associate Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at Georgia Tech. Among his awards are a Packard Fellowship and being named in Popular Science's "Brilliant 10" of 2016.


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319 | Bryan Van Norden on Philosophy From the Rest of the World

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318 | Edward Miguel on the Developing Practice of Development Economics

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317 | Nicole Rust on Why Neuroscience Hasn't Solved Brain Disorders

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AMA | June 2025

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316 | Niayesh Afshordi and Phil Halper

316 | Niayesh Afshordi and Phil Halper

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315 | Branden Fitelson on the Logic and Use of Probability

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