Fisher’s Fundamental Theorem (Part 1)

There are various ‘fundamental theorems’ in mathematics. The fundamental theorem of arithmetic, the fundamental theorem of algebra, and the fundamental theorem of calculus are three of the most famous. These are gems of mathematics.

The statistician, biologist and eugenicist Ronald Fisher had his own fundamental theorem: the ‘fundamental theorem of natural selection’. But this one is different—it’s a mess! It was unclearly stated, the first few proofs were packed with mistakes, and people d...