[PDF] Evolution And Adaptation eBook

Author : George Christopher Williams
Publisher :
Page : 326 pages
File Size : 35,77 MB
Release : 1966
Category : Adaptation (Biology).
ISBN :

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Biological evolution is a fact--but the many conflicting theories of evolution remain controversial even today. In 1966, simple Darwinism, which holds that evolution functions primarily at the level of the individual organism, was threatened by opposing concepts such as group selection, a popular idea stating that evolution acts to select entire species rather than individuals. George Williams's famous argument in favor of the Darwinists struck a powerful blow to those in opposing camps. His Adaptation and Natural Selection, now a classic of science literature, is a thorough and convincing essay in defense of Darwinism; its suggestions for developing effective principles for dealing with the evolution debate and its relevance to many fields outside biology ensure the timelessness of this critical work.

Author : Bozzano G Luisa
Publisher : Academic Press
Page : 507 pages
File Size : 44,11 MB
Release : 2013-10-22
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 1483288501

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Primate Adaptation and Evolutionis the only recent text published in this rapidly progressing field. It provides you with an extensive, current survey of the order Primates, both living and fossil. By combining information on primate anatomy, ecology, and behavior with the primate fossil record, this book enables students to study primates from all epochs as a single, viable group. It surveys major primate radiations throughout 65 million years, and provides equal treatment of both living and extinct species. ï Presents a summary of the primate fossilsï Reviews primate evolutionï Provides an introduction to the primate anatomyï Discusses the features that distinguish the living groups of primatesï Summarizes recent work on primate ecology

Author : K. Bijlsma
Publisher : Birkhäuser
Page : 328 pages
File Size : 45,28 MB
Release : 2013-03-08
Category : Science
ISBN : 3034888821

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Most organisms and populations have to cope with hostile environments, threatening their existence. Their ability to respond phenotypically and genetically to these challenges and to evolve adaptive mechanisms is, therefore, crucial. The contributions to this book aim at understanding, from a evolutionary perspective, the impact of stress on biological systems. Scientists, applying different approaches spanning from the molecular and the protein level to individuals, populations and ecosystems, explore how organisms adapt to extreme environments, how stress changes genetic structure and affects life histories, how organisms cope with thermal stress through acclimation, and how environmental and genetic stress induce fluctuating asymmetry, shape selection pressure and cause extinction of populations. Finally, it discusses the role of stress in evolutionary change, from stress induced mutations and selection to speciation and evolution at the geological time scale. The book contains reviews and novel scientific results on the subject. It will be of interest to both researchers and graduate students and may serve as a text for graduate courses.

Author : Rodney Mauricio
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 207 pages
File Size : 39,86 MB
Release : 2005-07-20
Category : Science
ISBN : 1402038364

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An enduring controversy in evolutionary biology is the genetic basis of adaptation. Darwin emphasized "many slight differences" as the ultimate source of variation to be acted upon by natural selection. In the early 1900’s, this view was opposed by "Mendelian geneticists", who emphasized the importance of "macromutations" in evolution. The Modern Synthesis resolved this controversy, concluding that mutations in genes of very small effect were responsible for adaptive evolution. A decade ago, Allen Orr and Jerry Coyne reexamined the evidence for this neo-Darwinian view and found that both the theoretical and empirical basis for it were weak. Orr and Coyne encouraged evolutionary biologists to reexamine this neglected question: what is the genetic basis of adaptive evolution? In this volume, a new generation of biologists have taken up this challenge. Using advances in both molecular genetic and statistical techniques, evolutionary geneticists have made considerable progress in this emerging field. In this volume, a diversity of examples from plant and animal studies provides valuable information for those interested in the genetics and evolution of complex traits.

Author : David C. Culver
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 254 pages
File Size : 40,95 MB
Release : 1995
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780674004252

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Their work reveals the advantages of caves for studying natural selection: the highly simplified habitats found underground serve as a natural laboratory for the evolutionary biologist, and the distinctive morphological features of cave fauna provide a wealth of data on evolutionary history and natural selection.

Author : Michael R. Rose
Publisher : Academic Press
Page : 532 pages
File Size : 31,23 MB
Release : 1996-09-22
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780125964210

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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.

Author : John N. Thompson
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 510 pages
File Size : 30,20 MB
Release : 2013-04-15
Category : Science
ISBN : 022601889X

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At a glance, most species seem adapted to the environment in which they live. Yet species relentlessly evolve, and populations within species evolve in different ways. Evolution, as it turns out, is much more dynamic than biologists realized just a few decades ago. In Relentless Evolution, John N. Thompson explores why adaptive evolution never ceases and why natural selection acts on species in so many different ways. Thompson presents a view of life in which ongoing evolution is essential and inevitable. Each chapter focuses on one of the major problems in adaptive evolution: How fast is evolution? How strong is natural selection? How do species co-opt the genomes of other species as they adapt? Why does adaptive evolution sometimes lead to more, rather than less, genetic variation within populations? How does the process of adaptation drive the evolution of new species? How does coevolution among species continually reshape the web of life? And, more generally, how are our views of adaptive evolution changing? Relentless Evolution draws on studies of all the major forms of life—from microbes that evolve in microcosms within a few weeks to plants and animals that sometimes evolve in detectable ways within a few decades. It shows evolution not as a slow and stately process, but rather as a continual and sometimes frenetic process that favors yet more evolutionary change.

Author : John H. Holland
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 236 pages
File Size : 16,62 MB
Release : 1992-04-29
Category : Psychology
ISBN : 9780262581110

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Genetic algorithms are playing an increasingly important role in studies of complex adaptive systems, ranging from adaptive agents in economic theory to the use of machine learning techniques in the design of complex devices such as aircraft turbines and integrated circuits. Adaptation in Natural and Artificial Systems is the book that initiated this field of study, presenting the theoretical foundations and exploring applications. In its most familiar form, adaptation is a biological process, whereby organisms evolve by rearranging genetic material to survive in environments confronting them. In this now classic work, Holland presents a mathematical model that allows for the nonlinearity of such complex interactions. He demonstrates the model's universality by applying it to economics, physiological psychology, game theory, and artificial intelligence and then outlines the way in which this approach modifies the traditional views of mathematical genetics. Initially applying his concepts to simply defined artificial systems with limited numbers of parameters, Holland goes on to explore their use in the study of a wide range of complex, naturally occuring processes, concentrating on systems having multiple factors that interact in nonlinear ways. Along the way he accounts for major effects of coadaptation and coevolution: the emergence of building blocks, or schemata, that are recombined and passed on to succeeding generations to provide, innovations and improvements.

Author : Julius van der Werf
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 256 pages
File Size : 32,31 MB
Release : 2008-10-17
Category : Science
ISBN : 1402090056

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Fitness and adaptation are fundamental characteristics of plant and animal species, enabling them to survive in their environment and to adapt to the inevitable changes in this environment. This is true for both the genetic resources of natural ecosystems as well as those used in agricultural production. Extensive genetic variation exists between varieties/breeds in a species and amongst individuals within breeds. This variation has developed over very long periods of time. A major ongoing challenge is how to best utilize this variation to meet short-term demands whilst also conserving it for longer-term possible use. Many animal breeding programs have led to increased performance for production traits but this has often been accompanied by reduced fitness. In addition, the global use of genetic resources prompts the question whether introduced genotypes are adapted to local production systems. Understanding the genetic nature of fitness and adaptation will enable us to better manage genetic resources allowing us to make efficient and sustainable decisions for the improvement or breeding of these resources. This book had an ambitious goal in bringing together a sample of the world’s leading scientists in animal breeding and evolutionary genetics to exchange knowledge to advance our understanding of these vital issues.