Mechanistic biology grew up in opposition to vitalism. It defined itself by denying that living organisms are organized by purposive, mind-like principles,9 but then reinvented them in the guise of genetic programs and selfish genes. The dominant paradigm of modern biology, although nominally mechanistic, is remarkably similar to vitalism, with “programs” or “information” or “instructions” or “messages” playing the role formerly attributed to souls.
