I 38
Selection/Dawkins: Thesis: Selection occurs at the lowest level. (Not species, not individual, but genes, unit of heredity).
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Genes, >
Genes/Dawkins.
I 42
Selection/Dawkins: Earliest form of selection: simply a selection of more stable molecules and rejecting unstable ones.
It would not make sense to shake the right number of atoms and the right amount of added energy to expect a human to come out. The age of the universe would not suffice for that.
I 73
Order/ordering: The cards themselves survive the shuffling.
Selection/Dawkins: If genes always mixed, selection would be absolutely impossible.
I 158
Def Degree of relationship/Dawkins: generation span: steps on the family tree. To Uncle: 3 steps: the common ancestor is e.g. A's father and B's grandfather.
Degree of Relationship: per generation span ½ multiplied by itself.
For g steps (1/2) g.
But that is only part of the degree of relationship. In case of several common relatives they must also be determined.
I 158
Selection/relationship/altruism/Dawkins: Now we can correctly calculate the chances for the multiplication of genes for altruism:
E.g., A gene for the suicidal rescue of five cousins would not become more numerous, but probably one for the suicidal rescue of five brothers or ten cousins.
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Altruism.
I 162
Family altruism/Dawkins: parental care is merely a special case of family altruism.
The fact that siblings do not exchange genes is not relevant, because they have obtained identical copies of the same genes from the same parents.
Family Selection/Kin Selection/DawkinsVsWilson, E.O.: transfers the concept of group selection to family. Now, however, the core of Hamilton's argument is that the separation between family and non-family is not clear, but a question of mathematical probability.
Hamilton's thesis
(1) does not imply that animals are selfless towards all family members and self-serving to all outsiders.
I 164
DawkinsVsWilson: He does not consider offspring as relatives! (I 461: Wilson has now withdrawn that).
Def Group selection/Dawkins: different survival rate in groups of individuals.
I 164
Kin selection/Dawkins: Of course animals cannot be expected to count how many relatives they are saving!
I 462
Kin selection/Dawkins: It is a frequent mistake for students to assume that animals must count how many relatives they are saving.
I 165
Kin selection/Dawkins: To determine the degree of relationship actuarial weightings can be used as a basis. How much of my wealth would I invest in the life of another individual.
I 166
An animal can behave as if it had done this calculation. E.g. just as a human catches a ball as if he had solved a series of differential equations.
I 372
Gene/selection/Dawkins: Under reasonable consideration, selection does not directly affect the genes. The DNA is spun into proteins, wrapped in membranes, shielded from the world and invisible to natural selection. (Like GouldVsDawkins.)
The selection would also hardly have a criterion for DNA molecules. All genes look the same just like all tapes look the same. Genes show in their effects.
((s) effect creates identity.)
1. Hamilton, W.D. 1964. The Genetical Evolution of Social Behavior. In: Journal of Theoretical Biology 7. pp- 1-16; 17-52.
