The Evolution Of Complexity By Means Of Natural Selection

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The Evolution of Complexity by Means of Natural Selection

John Tyler Bonner
The Evolution of Complexity by Means of Natural Selection Book PDF

Author : John Tyler Bonner
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 276 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2020-12-08
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691222110

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The Evolution of Complexity by Means of Natural Selection by John Tyler Bonner Pdf

John Tyler Bonner makes a new attack on an old problem: the question of how progressive increase in the size and complexity of animals and plants has occurred. "How is it," he inquires, "that an egg turns into an elaborate adult? How is it that a bacterium, given many millions of years, could have evolved into an elephant?" The author argues that we can understand this progression in terms of natural selection, but that in order to do so we must consider the role of development--or more precisely the role of life cycles--in evolutionary change. In a lively writing style that will be familiar to readers of his work The Evolution of Culture in Animals (Princeton, 1980), Bonner addresses a general audience interested in biology, as well as specialists in all areas of evolutionary biology. What is novel in the approach used here is the comparison of complexity inside the organism (especially cell differentiation) with the complexity outside (that is, within an ecological community). Matters of size at both these levels are closely related to complexity. The book shows how an understanding of the grand course of evolution can come from combining our knowledge of genetics, development, ecology, and even behavior.

Randomness in Evolution

John Tyler Bonner
Randomness in Evolution Book PDF

Author : John Tyler Bonner
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 149 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2013-03-21
Category : Science
ISBN : 9781400846429

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Randomness in Evolution by John Tyler Bonner Pdf

The important role that randomness plays in evolutionary change John Tyler Bonner, one of our most distinguished and insightful biologists, here challenges a central tenet of evolutionary biology. In this concise, elegantly written book, he makes the bold and provocative claim that some biological diversity may be explained by something other than natural selection. With his customary wit and accessible style, Bonner makes an argument for the underappreciated role that randomness—or chance—plays in evolution. Due to the tremendous and enduring influence of Darwin's natural selection, the importance of randomness has been to some extent overshadowed. Bonner shows how the effects of randomness differ for organisms of different sizes, and how the smaller an organism is, the more likely it is that morphological differences will be random and selection may not be involved to any degree. He traces the increase in size and complexity of organisms over geological time, and looks at the varying significance of randomness at different size levels, from microorganisms to large mammals. Bonner also discusses how sexual cycles vary depending on size and complexity, and how the trend away from randomness in higher forms has even been reversed in some social organisms. Certain to provoke lively discussion, Randomness in Evolution is a book that may fundamentally change our understanding of evolution and the history of life.

Adaptation and Natural Selection

George Christopher Williams
Adaptation and Natural Selection Book PDF

Author : George Christopher Williams
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 335 pages
File Size : 44,7 Mb
Release : 2018-10-30
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691185507

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Adaptation and Natural Selection by George Christopher Williams Pdf

Biological evolution is a fact—but the many conflicting theories of evolution remain controversial even today. When Adaptation and Natural Selection was first published in 1966, it struck a powerful blow against those who argued for the concept of group selection—the idea that evolution acts to select entire species rather than individuals. Williams’s famous work in favor of simple Darwinism over group selection has become a classic of science literature, valued for its thorough and convincing argument and its relevance to many fields outside of biology. Now with a new foreword by Richard Dawkins, Adaptation and Natural Selection is an essential text for understanding the nature of scientific debate.

The Evolution of Culture in Animals

John Tyler Bonner
The Evolution of Culture in Animals Book PDF

Author : John Tyler Bonner
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 215 pages
File Size : 51,7 Mb
Release : 2018-06-05
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691186986

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The Evolution of Culture in Animals by John Tyler Bonner Pdf

Animals do have culture, maintains this delightfully illustrated and provocative book, which cites a number of fascinating instances of animal communication and learning. John Bonner traces the origins of culture back to the early biological evolution of animals and provides examples of five categories of behavior leading to nonhuman culture: physical dexterity, relations with other species, auditory communication within a species, geographic locations, and inventions or innovations. Defining culture as the transmission of information by behavioral rather than genetical means, he demonstrates the continuum between the traits we find in animals and those we often consider uniquely human.

Natural Selection

George C. Williams
Natural Selection Book PDF

Author : George C. Williams
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 219 pages
File Size : 51,9 Mb
Release : 1992-10-01
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780198023395

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Natural Selection by George C. Williams Pdf

In this work, George C. Williams--one of evolutionary biology's most distinguished scholars--examines the mechanisms and meaning of natural selection in evolution. Williams offers his own perspective on modern evolutionary theory, including discussions of the gene as the unit of selection, clade selection and macroevolution, diversity within and among populations, stasis, and other timely and provocative topics. In dealing with the levels-of-selection controversy, he urges a pervasive form of the replicator-vehicle distinction. Natural selection, he argues, takes place in the separate domains of information and matter. Levels-of-selection questions, consequently, require different theoretical devices depending on the domains being discussed. In addressing these topics, Williams presents a synthesis of his three decades of research and creative thought which have contributed greatly to evolutionary biology in this century.

Modular Evolution

Lucio Vinicius
Modular Evolution Book PDF

Author : Lucio Vinicius
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 235 pages
File Size : 53,9 Mb
Release : 2010
Category : Biocomplexity
ISBN : 1107205816

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Modular Evolution by Lucio Vinicius Pdf

"Natural selection is more than the survival of the fittest: it is a force engendering higher biological complexity. Presenting a new explanation for the tendency of life to become more complex through evolution, this book offers an introduction to the key debates in evolutionary theory, including the role of genes and sex in evolution, the adaptive reasons for senescence and death and the origin of neural information. The author argues that biological complexity increased through the process of 'modularity transfer': modular phenotypes (proteins, somatic cells, learned behaviours) evolved into new modular information carriers (regulatory proteins, neural cells, words), giving rise to new information systems and higher levels of biological organisation. Modular Evolution makes sense of the unique place of humans in evolution, both as the pinnacle of biological complexity and inventors of non-biological evolution"--

Biology's First Law

Daniel W. McShea,Robert N. Brandon
Biology s First Law Book PDF

Author : Daniel W. McShea,Robert N. Brandon
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 186 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2010-07-15
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780226562278

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Biology's First Law by Daniel W. McShea,Robert N. Brandon Pdf

Life on earth is characterized by three striking phenomena that demand explanation: adaptation—the marvelous fit between organism and environment; diversity—the great variety of organisms; and complexity—the enormous intricacy of their internal structure. Natural selection explains adaptation. But what explains diversity and complexity? Daniel W. McShea and Robert N. Brandon argue that there exists in evolution a spontaneous tendency toward increased diversity and complexity, one that acts whether natural selection is present or not. They call this tendency a biological law—the Zero-Force Evolutionary Law, or ZFEL. This law unifies the principles and data of biology under a single framework and invites a reconceptualization of the field of the same sort that Newton’s First Law brought to physics. Biology’s First Law shows how the ZFEL can be applied to the study of diversity and complexity and examines its wider implications for biology. Intended for evolutionary biologists, paleontologists, and other scientists studying complex systems, and written in a concise and engaging format that speaks to students and interdisciplinary practitioners alike, this book will also find an appreciative audience in the philosophy of science.

Randomness in Evolution

John Tyler Bonner
Randomness in Evolution Book PDF

Author : John Tyler Bonner
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 148 pages
File Size : 44,8 Mb
Release : 2013-03-24
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691157016

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Randomness in Evolution by John Tyler Bonner Pdf

John Tyler Bonner here challenges a central tenet of evolutionary biology.

In the Light of Evolution

National Academy of Sciences
In the Light of Evolution Book PDF

Author : National Academy of Sciences
Publisher : Sackler Colloquium
Page : 388 pages
File Size : 52,8 Mb
Release : 2007
Category : Science
ISBN : UOM:39015073872999

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In the Light of Evolution by National Academy of Sciences Pdf

The Arthur M. Sackler Colloquia of the National Academy of Sciences address scientific topics of broad and current interest, cutting across the boundaries of traditional disciplines. Each year, four or five such colloquia are scheduled, typically two days in length and international in scope. Colloquia are organized by a member of the Academy, often with the assistance of an organizing committee, and feature presentations by leading scientists in the field and discussions with a hundred or more researchers with an interest in the topic. Colloquia presentations are recorded and posted on the National Academy of Sciences Sackler colloquia website and published on CD-ROM. These Colloquia are made possible by a generous gift from Mrs. Jill Sackler, in memory of her husband, Arthur M. Sackler.

Chaos and Life

Richard J. Bird
Chaos and Life Book PDF

Author : Richard J. Bird
Publisher : Columbia University Press
Page : 335 pages
File Size : 41,5 Mb
Release : 2003-11-26
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780231501552

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Chaos and Life by Richard J. Bird Pdf

Why, in a scientific age, do people routinely turn to astrologers, mediums, cultists, and every kind of irrational practitioner rather than to science to meet their spiritual needs? The answer, according to Richard J. Bird, is that science, especially biology, has embraced a view of life that renders meaningless the coincidences, serendipities, and other seemingly significant occurrences that fill people's everyday existence. Evolutionary biology rests on the assumption that although events are fundamentally random, some are selected because they are better adapted than others to the surrounding world. This book proposes an alternative view of evolving complexity. Bird argues that randomness means not disorder but infinite order. Complexity arises not from many random events of natural selection (although these are not unimportant) but from the "playing out" of chaotic systems—which are best described mathematically. When we properly understand the complex interplay of chaos and life, Bird contends, we will see that many events that appear random are actually the outcome of order.

Adaptation

Michael R. Rose,George V. Lauder
Adaptation Book PDF

Author : Michael R. Rose,George V. Lauder
Publisher : Academic Press
Page : 532 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 1996-09-22
Category : Science
ISBN : 0125964218

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Adaptation by Michael R. Rose,George V. Lauder Pdf

The study of evolutionary adaptation returns to the center stage of biology with this important volume. This innovative treatise discusses new developments in adaptation, with new methods, and new theoretical foundations, achievements, and prospects for a rich intellectual future. It is an insightful reintroduction to the themes that Darwin and his successors regarded as central to any profound understanding of biology.

Natural Selection

Mario A. Fares
Natural Selection Book PDF

Author : Mario A. Fares
Publisher : CRC Press
Page : 276 pages
File Size : 40,5 Mb
Release : 2014-11-21
Category : Science
ISBN : 9781482263725

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Natural Selection by Mario A. Fares Pdf

This book summarizes the knowledge in the field of methods to identify signatures of natural selection. A number of mathematical models and methods have been designed to identify the fingerprints of natural selection on genes and genomes. Such methods are provided in a simple and direct way so that students of different disciplines can navigate through molecular fitness landscapes using complex methods with a basic knowledge on bioinformatics. A collection of the main methods to detect selection in protein-coding genes and amino acid sequences is given at different levels of complexity, from nucleotides to proteins and molecular networks. The importance of identifying natural selection in genes and genomes through the methods described in this book transcends the bioinformatics and computational biology fields, presenting applications for experimental biologists in a straightforward and understandable way.

Modelling Evolution

Eugene Earnshaw-Whyte
Modelling Evolution Book PDF

Author : Eugene Earnshaw-Whyte
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 252 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2018-07-06
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781315294032

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Modelling Evolution by Eugene Earnshaw-Whyte Pdf

Evolution by natural selection explains the tree of life and the complex adaptations found throughout nature. The power and versatility of evolutionary explanations have proved tempting to scientists outside of biology, but adapting evolutionary concepts to new domains has been challenging. Even within biology, there are many difficult questions and problem cases that face evolutionary theory. Modelling Evolution offers a new, general account of evolution by natural selection that identifies the essential features of evolutionary models that transcend any particular discipline. Evolution by natural selection in its broad sense is the systemic advantage of a type, in contrast to the narrow definition using heritable variation in fitness. This account is explained, contextualised and applied to a variety of questions in both biology and the social sciences. Offering an accessible and comprehensive account of evolution that is applicable both to biology and the broader social sciences, Modelling Evolution will appeal to students and researchers interested in fields such as biology, economics, sociology, history, and psychology.

In the Light of Evolution

National Academy of Sciences
In the Light of Evolution Book PDF

Author : National Academy of Sciences
Publisher : National Academies Press
Page : 384 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2007-12-28
Category : Science
ISBN : 030910405X

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In the Light of Evolution by National Academy of Sciences Pdf

In December 2006, the National Academy of Sciences sponsored a colloquium (featured as part of the Arthur M. Sackler Colloquia series) on "Adaptation and Complex Design" to synthesize recent empirical findings and conceptual approaches toward understanding the evolutionary origins and maintenance of complex adaptations. Darwin's elucidation of natural selection as a creative natural force was a monumental achievement in the history of science, but a century and a half later some religious believers still contend that biotic complexity registers conscious supernatural design. In this book, modern scientific perspectives are presented on the evolutionary origin and maintenance of complex phenotypes including various behaviors, anatomies, and physiologies. After an introduction by the editors and an opening historical and conceptual essay by Francisco Ayala, this book includes 14 papers presented by distinguished evolutionists at the colloquium. The papers are organized into sections covering epistemological approaches to the study of biocomplexity, a hierarchy of topics on biological complexity ranging from ontogeny to symbiosis, and case studies explaining how complex phenotypes are being dissected in terms of genetics and development.

How the Leopard Changed Its Spots

Brian Goodwin
How the Leopard Changed Its Spots Book PDF

Author : Brian Goodwin
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 279 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2020-09-01
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691217802

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How the Leopard Changed Its Spots by Brian Goodwin Pdf

Do genes explain life? Can advances in evolutionary and molecular biology account for what we look like, how we behave, and why we die? In this powerful intervention into current biological thinking, Brian Goodwin argues that such genetic reductionism has important limits. Drawing on the sciences of complexity, the author shows how an understanding of the self-organizing patterns of networks is necessary for making sense of nature. Genes are important, but only as part of a process constrained by environment, physical laws, and the universal tendencies of complex adaptive systems. In a new preface for this edition, Goodwin reflects on the advances in both genetics and the sciences of complexity since the book's original publication.