Gould would be pleased that his thought experiment of replaying life’s tape has been transformed into an empirical research program that explores the roles of historical contingency and natural selection at multiple levels. However, his view of historical influences as the central feature of evolution remains debatable. Laboratory replay experiments show that repeatable outcomes are common, at least when defined broadly (e.g., at the level of genes, not mutations). Moreover, convergence in nature is more common than many biologists would have wagered not long ago.
On the other hand, as evolving lineages accumulate more differences, both experimental and comparative approaches suggest that the power of selection to drive convergence is reduced, and the contingent effects of history are amplified. Recognizing the joint contributions of contingency and natural selection raises interesting questions for further study, such as how the extent of prior genetic divergence affects the propensity for later convergence.