scholarly journals The extended evolutionary synthesis and the role of soft inheritance in evolution

2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1740) ◽  
pp. 2913-2921 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Dickins ◽  
Qazi Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Inclusive Fitness ◽  
Average Lifetime ◽  
Biological Organization ◽  
Extended Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
The Core ◽  
Made In ◽  
Key Questions

In recent years, a number of researchers have advocated extending the modern synthesis in evolutionary biology. One of the core arguments made in favour of an extension comes from work on soft inheritance systems, including transgenerational epigenetic effects, cultural transmission and niche construction. In this study, we outline this claim and then take issue with it. We argue that the focus on soft inheritance has led to a conflation of proximate and ultimate causation, which has in turn obscured key questions about biological organization and calibration across the life span to maximize average lifetime inclusive fitness. We illustrate this by presenting hypotheses that we believe incorporate the core phenomena of soft inheritance and will aid in understanding them.

scholarly journals Perfect Timing: Mobile Brain/Body Imaging scaffolds the 4E-cognition research program

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco J. Parada ◽  
Alejandra Rossi
Keyword(s):  
Real Life ◽  
Body Imaging ◽  
The Core ◽  
4E Cognition ◽  
Body Dynamics ◽  
Brain And Behavior ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
A Current ◽  
Made In

Recent technological advancements encompassed under the Mobile Brain/Body Imaging (MoBI) framework, have produced exciting new experimental results linking mind, brain, and behavior. The main goal of the MoBI approach is to model brain and body dynamics during every-day, natural, real-life situations. However, even though considerable advances have been made in both hardware and software, technical and analytical conditions are not yet optimal. The MoBI approach is based on attaching synchronized, small, and lightweight neurobehavioral sensors to and around participants during behaviorally-measured structured, semi-structured, and unstructured settings. These sensors have yet to become fully unobtrusive or transparent. Even though a considerable technical and analytical gap still exists, acquisition of brain/body dynamics during real-world situations as well as in virtual, modified, and/or extended laboratory settings has been -in many cases- successful. Nevertheless, even if the technical/analytical gap is breached, novel hypotheses, measures, and experimental paradigms are needed in order to tackle MoBI’s ultimate goal: to model and understand cognition, behavior, and experience as it emerges and unfolds unto and from the world. Such a goal is not completely novel or unique to the MoBI framework; it is at the core of a long-standing scientific and philosophical challenge. The present work starts by briefly reviewing the historical origins of complexity in order to identify three “waves and ripples of complexity” derived from naturalist accounts to the historical brain/body problem. We furthermore argue for a current 4th wave. Finally, we offer the reader what we consider to be the main objective for the MoBI+4E framework in its quest for understanding the functional role of brain/body/world couplings in the emergence of cognition.

Part II Ambit of Protection, 6 Investment

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
McLachlan Campbell ◽  
Shore Laurence ◽  
Weiniger Matthew
Keyword(s):  
Minority Shareholders ◽  
Central Concept ◽  
Holding Companies ◽  
Host State ◽  
The Core ◽  
Investment Treaties ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Portfolio Investments ◽  
Made In

Chapter 6 explores the central concept of ‘investment’. It first considers the core question of the definition of ‘investment’ under the ICSID Convention and under investment treaties. It then takes up four important issues: (1) the time when an investment is made in relation to the temporal scope of the treaty protections; (2) the extent to which pre-contract investment may obtain treaty protection; (3) the place of an investment; and (4) the role of host State law in defining ‘investment’. It then analyses a set of problems that arise out of indirect investments: the relation between the losses suffered by a subsidiary in the host State and the investor’s investment; the rights of minority shareholders; claims brought by holding companies; corporate restructuring as a means to gain the advantage of investment treaties; the position of ultimate beneficiaries; and the position of portfolio investments.

scholarly journals Domestication as a model system for the extended evolutionary synthesis

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 20160133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melinda A. Zeder
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Model System ◽  
Evolutionary Change ◽  
Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Extended Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
Model Case ◽  
The Core ◽  
Multiple Regions

One of the challenges in evaluating arguments for extending the conceptual framework of evolutionary biology involves the identification of a tractable model system that allows for an assessment of the core assumptions of the extended evolutionary synthesis (EES). The domestication of plants and animals by humans provides one such case study opportunity. Here, I consider domestication as a model system for exploring major tenets of the EES. First I discuss the novel insights that niche construction theory (NCT, one of the pillars of the EES) provides into the domestication processes, particularly as they relate to five key areas: coevolution, evolvability, ecological inheritance, cooperation and the pace of evolutionary change. This discussion is next used to frame testable predictions about initial domestication of plants and animals that contrast with those grounded in standard evolutionary theory, demonstrating how these predictions might be tested in multiple regions where initial domestication took place. I then turn to a broader consideration of how domestication provides a model case study consideration of the different ways in which the core assumptions of the EES strengthen and expand our understanding of evolution, including reciprocal causation, developmental processes as drivers of evolutionary change, inclusive inheritance, and the tempo and rate of evolutionary change.

scholarly journals Why an extended evolutionary synthesis is necessary

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 20170015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerd B. Müller
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Evolutionary Process ◽  
Evolutionary Developmental Biology ◽  
Standard Theory ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Extended Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
Cultural Conditions ◽  
Theoretical Synthesis

Since the last major theoretical integration in evolutionary biology—the modern synthesis (MS) of the 1940s—the biosciences have made significant advances. The rise of molecular biology and evolutionary developmental biology, the recognition of ecological development, niche construction and multiple inheritance systems, the ‘-omics’ revolution and the science of systems biology, among other developments, have provided a wealth of new knowledge about the factors responsible for evolutionary change. Some of these results are in agreement with the standard theory and others reveal different properties of the evolutionary process. A renewed and extended theoretical synthesis, advocated by several authors in this issue, aims to unite pertinent concepts that emerge from the novel fields with elements of the standard theory. The resulting theoretical framework differs from the latter in its core logic and predictive capacities. Whereas the MS theory and its various amendments concentrate on genetic and adaptive variation in populations, the extended framework emphasizes the role of constructive processes, ecological interactions and systems dynamics in the evolution of organismal complexity as well as its social and cultural conditions. Single-level and unilinear causation is replaced by multilevel and reciprocal causation. Among other consequences, the extended framework overcomes many of the limitations of traditional gene-centric explanation and entails a revised understanding of the role of natural selection in the evolutionary process. All these features stimulate research into new areas of evolutionary biology.

scholarly journals The Dual Role of Evo-Devo Mechanisms and the Extended Evolutionary Synthesis

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 251-275
Author(s):  
Guillermo Folguera ◽  
Nicolás Lavagnino
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Evolutionary Developmental Biology ◽  
Biological Variation ◽  
Dual Role ◽  
Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
Main Question ◽  
Extended Evolutionary Synthesis ◽  
Evo Devo ◽  
Somatic Selection

The distinction between mechanisms that generate biological variation and mechanisms that modify it has been important in contemporary Biology, especially since the establishment of the Evolutionary Synthesis (ES) in the first part of the twentieth century. In the ES, and in its subsequent legacy to evolutionary biology, the focus was directed at mechanisms that modify biological variation. In recent years, evo-devo (Evolutionary Developmental Biology) emerged as an area of knowledge that proposes to extend the ES in many forms. In this sense, given that evo-devo integrates different areas of Biology, different types of mechanisms can be found. In order to understand evo-devo mechanisms, as well as its relation with the ES, we analyzed the role that evo-devo mechanisms play with respect to biological variation. The main question in our analysis was: do evo-devo mechanisms have a function of generators and/or modifiers of biological variation? We focused on three evo-devo mechanisms: environmental induction, hypervariability/somatic selection and developmental bias. Our analysis showed a different characterization of the action of evo-devo mechanisms. This heterogeneity in the role of evo-devo mechanisms shows that, in general, the distinction is maintained but there is a mechanism that presents a dual role. Our analysis indicates that, at least with respect to mechanisms, evo-devo extends and departs from what was proposed in the evolutionary synthesis.

Who Decides? Interpretation, Balance, and the Role of Courts

2020 ◽  
pp. 164-193
Author(s):  
Thomas P. Crocker
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Deliberation ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
The Core ◽  
Core Idea ◽  
Constitutional Tradition ◽  
Gains And Losses ◽  
Counterterrorism Policy ◽  
Made In

This chapter highlights arguments on the trade-off thesis, which is fundamentally flawed. It emphasizes how deference to the president is inconsistent with a constitutional tradition that preciously guards decisions about liberty. It analyzes the core idea of constitutional trade-off that lacks a conception of how to compare values or how to describe what specific liberties must give way for something to gain in security. The chapter also illustrates the extent of gains and losses that are made in liberty or security and through processes of democratic deliberation that comport with American constitutionalism rather than reflexive claims that necessity requires a trade-off. It points out the ways of justifying extreme counterterrorism policy, which argues that necessitous circumstances require trade off in liberty for greater security.

scholarly journals Descent with modification and the archaeological record

2011 ◽  
Vol 366 (1567) ◽  
pp. 1070-1079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Shennan
Keyword(s):  
Inverse Problem ◽  
Cultural Evolution ◽  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Archaeological Record ◽  
Cultural Patterns ◽  
Number Of Genes ◽  
Object Of Study ◽  
Theoretical Foundations ◽  
Made In

Recent years have seen major advances in our understanding of the way in which cultural transmission takes place and the factors that affect it. The theoretical foundations of those advances have been built by postulating the existence of a variety of different processes and deriving their consequences mathematically or by simulation. The operation of these processes in the real world can be studied through experiment and naturalistic observation. In contrast, archaeologists have an ‘inverse problem’. For them the object of study is the residues of different behaviours represented by the archaeological record and the problem is to infer the microscale processes that produced them, a vital task for cultural evolution since this is the only direct record of past cultural patterns. The situation is analogous to that faced by population geneticists scanning large number of genes and looking for evidence of selection as opposed to drift, but more complicated for many reasons, not least the enormous variety of different forces that affect cultural transmission. This paper reviews the progress that has been made in inferring processes from patterns and the role of demography in those processes, together with the problems that have arisen.

Chromatin structures condensed by linker histones

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bing-Rui Zhou ◽  
Yawen Bai
Keyword(s):  
Structural Unit ◽  
Linker Histone ◽  
Histone H2a ◽  
Linker Histones ◽  
The Core ◽  
High Order Chromatin Structure ◽  
Core Histones ◽  
Order Structures ◽  
Made In

Abstract In eukaryotic cells, genomic DNA exists in the form of chromatin through association with histone proteins, which consist of four core histone (H2A, H2B, H3, and H4) families and one linker histone (H1) family. The core histones bind to DNA to form the nucleosome, the recurring structural unit of chromatin. The linker histone binds to the nucleosome to form the next structural unit of chromatin, the chromatosome, which occurs dominantly in metazoans. Linker histones also play an essential role in condensing chromatin to form higher order structures. Unlike the core histones in the formation of the nucleosome, the role of linker histone in the formation of the chromatosome and high-order chromatin structure is not well understood. Nevertheless, exciting progress in the structural studies of chromatosomes and nucleosome arrays condensed by linker histones has been made in the last several years. In this mini-review, we discuss these recent experimental results and provide some perspectives for future studies.

scholarly journals Role of environmentally induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance in evolutionary biology: Unified Evolution Theory

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael K Skinner ◽  
Eric E Nilsson
Keyword(s):  
Natural Selection ◽  
Phenotypic Variation ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Genetic Alterations ◽  
Modern Synthesis ◽  
Darwinian Evolution ◽  
Evolution Theory ◽  
Transgenerational Inheritance ◽  
Extended Evolutionary Synthesis

Abstract The current evolutionary biology theory primarily involves genetic alterations and random DNA sequence mutations to generate the phenotypic variation required for Darwinian natural selection to act. This neo-Darwinian evolution is termed the Modern Evolution Synthesis and has been the primary paradigm for nearly 100 years. Although environmental factors have a role in neo-Darwinian natural selection, Modern Evolution Synthesis does not consider environment to impact the basic molecular processes involved in evolution. An Extended Evolutionary Synthesis has recently developed that extends the modern synthesis to consider non-genetic processes. Over the past few decades, environmental epigenetics research has been demonstrated to regulate genetic processes and directly generate phenotypic variation independent of genetic sequence alterations. Therefore, the environment can on a molecular level through non-genetic (i.e. epigenetic) mechanisms directly influence phenotypic variation, genetic variation, inheritance and adaptation. This direct action of the environment to alter phenotype that is heritable is a neo-Lamarckian concept that can facilitate neo-Darwinian (i.e. Modern Synthesis) evolution. The integration of genetics, epigenetics, Darwinian theory, Lamarckian concepts, environment, and epigenetic inheritance provides a paradigm shift in evolution theory. The role of environmental-induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance in evolution is presented to describe a more unified theory of evolutionary biology.

scholarly journals Do Somatic Cells Really Sacrifice Themselves? Why an Appeal to Coercion May be a Helpful Strategy in Explaining the Evolution of Multicellularity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Stencel ◽  
Javier Suárez
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Genetic Relatedness ◽  
Inclusive Fitness ◽  
Somatic Cells ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Inclusive Fitness Theory ◽  
Germline Cells ◽  
Multicellular Organisms

AbstractAn understanding of the factors behind the evolution of multicellularity is one of today’s frontiers in evolutionary biology. This is because multicellular organisms are made of one subset of cells with the capacity to transmit genes to the next generation (germline cells) and another subset responsible for maintaining the functionality of the organism, but incapable of transmitting genes to the next generation (somatic cells). The question arises: why do somatic cells sacrifice their lives for the sake of germline cells? How is germ/soma separation maintained? One conventional answer refers to inclusive fitness theory, according to which somatic cells sacrifice themselves altruistically, because in so doing they enhance the transmission of their genes by virtue of their genetic relatedness to germline cells. In the present article we will argue that this explanation ignores the key role of policing mechanisms in maintaining the germ/soma divide. Based on the pervasiveness of the latter, we argue that the role of altruistic mechanisms in the evolution of multicellularity is limited and that our understanding of this evolution must be enriched through the consideration of coercion mechanisms.

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