In November 2018 the Santa Fe Institute hosted a two‐day workshop titled Developmental Bias and Evolution, funded by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. Involving 34 participants and 22 talks, the workshop covered a wide range of approaches toward the study of bias exerted by developmental systems in the production of phenotypic variation, the impact such bias might have on evolutionary dynamics, and the methods that exist to assess the nature and consequences of this impact. Talks included historical retrospectives, philosophical examinations, and a great diversity of empirical treatments of the subject. Significant discussion and debate followed each presentation, and creative tensions emerged around key issues that characterize the diversity of perceptions of what, exactly, constitutes bias in developmental systems, when or how such bias may be evolutionarily relevant, and at the most basic level, whether the concept of developmental bias is itself useful in fueling a productive research program. This special issue is meant to capture this diversity of viewpoints, and to provide a collection of perspectives that will inform and motivate the next round of research, and the next generation of researchers.

2018年11月，圣达菲研究所举办了为期两天的研讨会，名为发展偏向与进化由约翰邓普顿基金会（John Templeton Foundation）资助。该研讨会涉及34位参与者和22个演讲，涵盖了研究发育系统在表型变异产生中产生的偏见，偏见可能对进化动力学产生的影响以及评估自然界的方法的广泛方法。以及这种影响的后果。讲座包括历史回顾，哲学检查以及对该主题的经验处理。每次演讲后都进行了大量的讨论和辩论，围绕关键问题出现了创造性的张力，这些张力表征了对于到底是什么构成了发展系统中的偏见，何时或如何在进化上与之相关以及在最基本的层面上的看法的多样性。发展偏见的概念本身是否对推动生产性研究计划有用？本期专刊旨在捕捉观点的多样性，并提供一系列观点，这些观点将为下一轮研究和下一代研究人员提供信息和激励。