Frozen Evolution. Or, that’s not the way it is, Mr. Darwin. A Farewell to Selfish Gene.

Popper was probably the most important philosopher of science of the 20^th century. For example, he was concerned with the aspect of confirmability (verifiability) and refutability (falsifiability) of scientific theories (see also Theories and hypotheses). It is interesting for evolutionary biology that he basically never understood it and simultaneously spoke about it very authoritatively.

Czech people will find it of interest that he died almost immediately after ancient and famous Charles University awarded him an honorary doctorate. In fact, it seems that an honorary doctorate or award from my alma mater is one of the most dangerous events that a person can encounter. It is surprising that the right to award prizes and honorary doctorates of Charles University has not yet become the subject of strict international control. Purely at random, the political map of the Near East could look entirely differently if someone had warned Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi against the danger of accepting an honorary doctorate from Charles University.