Evolutionary Instability: Logical and Material Aspects of a Unified Theory of Biosocial Evolution

ISBN-13: 9783540518082 / Angielski / Miękka / 1990 / 167 str.

Gebhard Geiger

Opis

The scope of this book can be described best as a compilation of papers presented to an imaginary interdisciplinary conference on philosophical and material problems of biosocial evolution. The conference is espe- cially designed to discuss unifying theoretical approaches to pheno- mena of both increasing structural complexity ("natural self-organi- sation") and biosocial adaptation. Among the contributors to the confe- rence are mathematical system theoretists, philosophers of science, theoretical population biologists, and social scientists. The only diffe- rence to a real conference of this kind is that all contributions are deli- vered by one and the same author, who also tries to integrate them to some higher degree than can normally be attained in conference papers. Technically, this integration amounts to the embedding of the biobeha- vioural concepts of evolutionarily stable and unstable strategies into the framework of the structure and stability of hierarchical systems. When embarking on my work on philosophical and interdisciplinary problems of the life sciences about 6 years ago, I decided not to contri- bute to the obscurantist talk of - horribile dictu - "emergence" , "onto- logical reductionism" and the like contaminating the recent sociobio- logy debate. I rather found it a genuinely philosophical task to analyse this talk, and so I attempted to recast the relevant concepts and princip- les into a form allowing for definite conclusions. Among other things, which I hope the reader will find more pleasant, this attempt had some unfortunate effect, however.

Spis treści

I Introduction.- One Structure and Evolution of Hierarchical Systems.- II On Emergent Structures, Truisms and Fallacies.- 1 Structure and Complexity of Evolving Systems.- 1.1 Examples.- 1.2 Basic Definitions.- 1.3 Informal Summary.- 2 Basic Problems of the Evolution of Matter.- 3 Holism Versus Reductionism.- 3.1 Reduction of Theroies.- 3.2 Lower-Level Representations.- 3.3 Cross-Level Deterministic Effects.- 3.4 Holism Reconsidered.- 3.5 Informal Statement of Results.- 4 The Paradox of Emergent Evolution.- 4.1 Emergent Evolution: A Crude Misconception.- 4.2 A Note on Stochastic Evolutionary Theories.- III The Concept of Unified Theory.- 1 Synthesis Versus Reduction of Theories.- 2 Synthesis of Theories Through Parametrisation of Laws.- 2.1 Parametrisation of Laws.- 2.2 Synthesis of Theories.- 2.3 Informal Summary.- 3 The Central Representation Theorem.- 3.1 The Meaning and Significance of the Theorem: An Informal Résumé.- 4 State-Determined Hierarchical Systems.- 4.1 Parameter Families of Systems.- 4.2 Unified System Theories.- 4.3 State-Determined Hierarchies.- 4.4 Evolutionary Processes.- 4.5 Informal Summary and Discussion.- 5 Pointless Scientific Controversies.- 5.1 Cross-Level Similarity of Structures.- 5.2. Cultural Systems as “Emergent Wholes“.- 5.3 System Simulation.- 5.4 The Problem of Similarity in Comparative Ethology.- 5.5 Darwinism Versus Mendelism.- Appendix: Examples.- 1 Interacting Biological Populations.- 1.1 Dynamical Systems.- 1.2 Interacting Populations as Coupled Systems.- 1.3 The Associate Parameter Family.- 1.4 State Determinacy and Hierarchical Evolution.- Two The Evolution of Social Structure.- IV Perspectives on Non-Adaptive Evolution.- 1 Is Sociobiology Reductionist?.- 1.1 Complexities of Social Interaction.- 1.2 Sociobiology: Merits and Limits.- 1.3 The Quest for Alternatives.- 1.4 An Approach to Non-Adaptive Change.- 2 The Concepts of Structural and Evolutionary Instability.- 2.1 The Meaning of Structural Instability.- 2.2 Structurally Stable and Unstable Games.- 2.3 Informal Summary and Discussion.- V Structural Instability in Evolutionary Population Biology.- 1 Sociobiology and the Structural Instability of Behaviour Patterns.- 1.1 Sources of Evolutionary Change.- 1.2 A Dynamical Approach to Biosocial Genetics.- 1.3 Asymptotically Stable Equilibria.- 1.4 Favourable Mutations.- 1.5 Application to Inclusive-Fitness Theory.- 1.6 Applications to Insect Social Structure.- 1.7 Evolutionary Instability in Secular Time Scales.- 1.8 Informal Summary and Conclusion.- 2 Structural Instability in Population Dynamics.- 2.1 Population Interactions in Secular Time Scales.- 2.2 Low-Dimensional Examples.- 2.3 The Adaptive Topography Reconstructed.- 2.4 Informal Summary and Discussion.- 3 Dynamics and Structural Change in Biocultural Coevolution.- 3.1 The Basic Equations.- 3.2 The Concept of Cultural Capacity.- 3.3 The Impact of Learning on Biocultural Evolution.- 3.4 The Expiration of the Coevolutionary Circuit.- 3.5 Summary and Conclusions.- VI Applications to Human Social Structure.- 1 The Anthropological Significance of Evolutionary Stability and Instability.- 2 Political Power as an Evolutionary Structure.- 2.1 Evolution of Hierarchical Complexity.- 2.2 Stability of Social Structure.- 2.3 Biobehavioural Bases of Influence and Power.- 2.4 Political Power.- 2.5 Summary and Discussion.- 3 On the Evolution of Complex, Political Society.- 3.1 The Evolutionary Conceptual Framework.- 3.2 Biobehavioural Bases of Sociocultural Complexity.- 3.3 From Rites to Sanctions.- 3.4 Summary.- VII Concluding Remarks.- References.- List of Symbols.