[6] Working at the interface among physiology, evolution and design led Turner to formulate the idea of the Extended Organism,[7] reviewed in a range of journals, including Nature.
[8] Turner's current research focuses on the emergence of super-organismal structure and function in mound-building termites of southern Africa (Macrotermes).
[11][12][13] Building upon this empirical work, Turner has argued that the principle of homeostasis is a fundamental property of living systems that accounts for, among other things, the phenomenon of biological design.
With this argument, Turner counters both Intelligent Design[14] and strong Darwinism, showing how natural selection is complemented by other factors.
Turner proposes that modern evolutionary theory over-emphasizes genetic natural selection and a tendency to separate information from catalysis at the molecular level.