consilience

Consilience is the idea that knowledge from independent, diverse sources can be brought together to form a unified explanation of phenomena. The term was coined by the 19th‑century philosopher William Whewell as consilience of inductions, describing how multiple lines of evidence, drawn from different disciplines, converge on the same conclusion. The concept was later popularized by the biologist E. O. Wilson in Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge (1998), which argues for a broad, integrative science.

Practically, consilience seeks more than casual interdisciplinarity; it aims for a coherent theoretical framework in which facts, laws, and methods from disparate fields reinforce one another. Proponents point to historical successes such as Darwin's theory of evolution, whose explanatory power arises from the convergence of evidence in biology, geology, paleontology, biogeography, and comparative anatomy, as well as genetics and developmental biology over time.

Critics warn against overclaiming unity, noting that genuine integration may be limited by disciplinary specializations, differences in methods, and the possibility that some phenomena resist reduction to a single explanatory schema. Detractors also argue that an emphasis on unity can marginalize pluralistic or non-reductionist approaches and oversimplify complex social and cultural factors.

Today, consilience remains a point of reference in philosophy of science, science policy, and transdisciplinary research. It informs efforts to connect natural and social sciences with humanities in addressing broad problems such as health, environment, and human nature, while remaining subject to ongoing debate about the feasibility and desirability of a wholesale unity of knowledge.