"What is required, is something much more complex. It is order entering upon novelty; so that the massiveness of order does not degenerate into mere repetition; and so that the novelty is always reflected upon a background of system."

Whitehead's "progress" sounds like "adaptive evolution"*, except that much of the novelty which drives progress within human society, as distinct from the novelty which advances the species itself, is purposeful, not random.

Mutations are the raw materials of evolution.

Evolution absolutely depends on mutations because this is the only way that new alleles are created.
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In a remarkable study of three-spined sticklebacks published in the 15 April 2004 issue of Nature, Michael Shapiro, Melissa Marks, Catherine Peichel, and their colleagues report that a mutation in a noncoding region of the Pitx1 gene accounts for most of the difference in the structure of the pelvic bones of the marine stickleback and its close freshwater cousins.
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Here then is a remarkable demonstration of how a single gene mutation can not only be viable but can lead to a major change in phenotype — adaptive evolution."

Mutation and Evolution
http://snipurl.com/g9wk

* Evolution involves two interrelated phenomena:

adaptation
Over the course of time, species modify their phenotypes in ways that permit them to succeed in their environment.
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speciation
Over the course of time, the number of species multiplies; that is, a single species can give rise to two or more descendant species. In fact, Darwin maintained that all species are related; that is, any two species on earth today have shared a common ancestor at some point in their history."

Another dramatic example of the "crucial", species-altering power of a tiny, seemingly insignificant, random genetic mutation:

One small step for a gene, one great leap for mankind.

Jaw gene mutation called key to evolution
It made room for larger brain, researchers theorize
David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor
San Francisco Chronicle, Thursday, March 25, 2004

Extracts:

"A tiny genetic change in the muscles of prehumans millions of years ago may have played a major role in endowing modern Homo sapiens with the larger brains and the capacity for thought, language and tool-making that distinguishes us from apes, researchers are reporting today.

The novel theory, advanced by a team of biologists and surgeons, suggests that a mutation in a single gene some 2.4 million years ago was largely responsible for a crucial change in the shape of our ancestors' jaws and allowed for skulls with room for brains far larger than earlier members of the hominid line.
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The mutated gene that the Penn team discovered is one of a class of codes for a protein called myosin, which is responsible for muscle contraction and determines the strength and size of the chewing and biting muscles of the jaws. In modern humans the mutated myosin gene -- known as MYH16 -- differs from the far older unmutated gene found in many nonhuman primates, including macaques and chimpanzees.

The mutated myosin gene in effect disabled the large and powerful jaw muscles found in fossils of earlier large-skulled hominids and thereby launched a lineage of prehumans with smaller jaws and larger skulls with plenty of room for bigger brains, the researchers contend."
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http://snipurl.com/5b1s