Download or read book The Role of Mathematics in Evolutionary Theory written by Jun Otsuka and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2019-10-17 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The central role of mathematical modeling in modern evolutionary theory has raised a concern as to why and how abstract formulae can say anything about empirical phenomena of evolution. This Element introduces existing philosophical approaches to this problem and proposes a new account according to which evolutionary models are based on causal, and not just mathematical, assumptions. The novel account features causal models both as the Humean 'uniform nature' underlying evolutionary induction and as the organizing framework that integrates mathematical and empirical assumptions into a cohesive network of beliefs that functions together to achieve epistemic goals of evolutionary biology.
Download or read book Evolutionary Theory written by Sean H. Rice and published by Sinauer Associates Incorporated. This book was released on 2004 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolutionary Theory is for graduate students, researchers, and advanced undergraduates who want an understanding of the mathematical and biological reasoning that underlies evolutionary theory. The book covers all of the major theoretical approaches used to study the mechanics of evolution, including classical one- and two-locus models, diffusion theory, coalescent theory, quantitative genetics, and game theory. There are also chapters on theoretical approaches to the evolution of development and on multilevel selection theory. Each subject is illustrated by focusing on those results that have the greatest power to influence the way that we think about how evolution works. These major results are developed in detail, with many accompanying illustrations, showing exactly how they are derived and how the mathematics relates to the biological insights that they yield. In this way, the reader learns something of the actual machinery of different branches of theory while gaining a deeper understanding of the evolutionary process. Roughly half of the book focuses on gene-based models, the other half being concerned with general phenotype-based theory. Throughout, emphasis is placed on the fundamental relationships between the different branches of theory, illustrating how all of these branches are united by a few basic, universal, principles. The only mathematical background assumed is basic calculus. More advanced mathematical methods are explained, with the help of an extensive appendix, when they are needed.
Download or read book Mathematical Evolutionary Theory written by Marcus W. Feldman and published by . This book was released on 2014-07-14 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The papers in this volume celebrate Samuel Karlin's contributions to mathematical evolutionary theory."--Page vii.
Download or read book Mathematics and the Real World written by Zvi Artstein and published by Prometheus Books. This book was released on 2014-09-02 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this accessible and illuminating study of how the science of mathematics developed, a veteran math researcher and educator looks at the ways in which our evolutionary makeup is both a help and a hindrance to the study of math. Artstein chronicles the discovery of important mathematical connections between mathematics and the real world from ancient times to the present. The author then describes some of the contemporary applications of mathematics—in probability theory, in the study of human behavior, and in combination with computers, which give mathematics unprecedented power. The author concludes with an insightful discussion of why mathematics, for most people, is so frustrating. He argues that the rigorous logical structure of math goes against the grain of our predisposed ways of thinking as shaped by evolution, presumably because the talent needed to cope with logical mathematics gave the human race as a whole no evolutionary advantage. With this in mind, he offers ways to overcome these innate impediments in the teaching of math.
Download or read book A Biologist s Guide to Mathematical Modeling in Ecology and Evolution written by Sarah P. Otto and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2011-09-19 with total page 745 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thirty years ago, biologists could get by with a rudimentary grasp of mathematics and modeling. Not so today. In seeking to answer fundamental questions about how biological systems function and change over time, the modern biologist is as likely to rely on sophisticated mathematical and computer-based models as traditional fieldwork. In this book, Sarah Otto and Troy Day provide biology students with the tools necessary to both interpret models and to build their own. The book starts at an elementary level of mathematical modeling, assuming that the reader has had high school mathematics and first-year calculus. Otto and Day then gradually build in depth and complexity, from classic models in ecology and evolution to more intricate class-structured and probabilistic models. The authors provide primers with instructive exercises to introduce readers to the more advanced subjects of linear algebra and probability theory. Through examples, they describe how models have been used to understand such topics as the spread of HIV, chaos, the age structure of a country, speciation, and extinction. Ecologists and evolutionary biologists today need enough mathematical training to be able to assess the power and limits of biological models and to develop theories and models themselves. This innovative book will be an indispensable guide to the world of mathematical models for the next generation of biologists. A how-to guide for developing new mathematical models in biology Provides step-by-step recipes for constructing and analyzing models Interesting biological applications Explores classical models in ecology and evolution Questions at the end of every chapter Primers cover important mathematical topics Exercises with answers Appendixes summarize useful rules Labs and advanced material available
Download or read book Mathematical Models of Social Evolution written by Richard McElreath and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2008-09-15 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the last several decades, mathematical models have become central to the study of social evolution, both in biology and the social sciences. But students in these disciplines often seriously lack the tools to understand them. A primer on behavioral modeling that includes both mathematics and evolutionary theory, Mathematical Models of Social Evolution aims to make the student and professional researcher in biology and the social sciences fully conversant in the language of the field. Teaching biological concepts from which models can be developed, Richard McElreath and Robert Boyd introduce readers to many of the typical mathematical tools that are used to analyze evolutionary models and end each chapter with a set of problems that draw upon these techniques. Mathematical Models of Social Evolution equips behaviorists and evolutionary biologists with the mathematical knowledge to truly understand the models on which their research depends. Ultimately, McElreath and Boyd’s goal is to impart the fundamental concepts that underlie modern biological understandings of the evolution of behavior so that readers will be able to more fully appreciate journal articles and scientific literature, and start building models of their own.
Download or read book Mathematics of Evolution written by Fred Hoyle and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Mathematics of Evolution and Phylogeny written by Olivier Gascuel and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2005-02-24 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book considers evolution at different scales: sequences, genes, gene families, organelles, genomes and species. The focus is on the mathematical and computational tools and concepts, which form an essential basis of evolutionary studies, indicate their limitations, and give them orientation. Recent years have witnessed rapid progress in the mathematics of evolution and phylogeny, with models and methods becoming more realistic, powerful, and complex. Aimed at graduates and researchers in phylogenetics, mathematicians, computer scientists and biologists, and including chapters by leading scientists: A. Bergeron, D. Bertrand, D. Bryant, R. Desper, O. Elemento, N. El-Mabrouk, N. Galtier, O. Gascuel, M. Hendy, S. Holmes, K. Huber, A. Meade, J. Mixtacki, B. Moret, E. Mossel, V. Moulton, M. Pagel, M.-A. Poursat, D. Sankoff, M. Steel, J. Stoye, J. Tang, L.-S. Wang, T. Warnow, Z. Yang, this book of contributed chapters explains the basis and covers the recent results in this highly topical area.
Download or read book Mathematical Evolutionary Theory written by Marcus Feldman and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2014-07-14 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An international group of distinguished scientists presents an up-to-date survey of quantitative problems at the forefront of modern evolutionary theory. Their articles illustrate results from the latest research in population and behavioral genetics, molecular evolution, and ecology. Each author gives careful attention to the exposition of the models, the logic of their analysis, and the legitimacy of qualitative biological inferences. The topics covered include stochastic models of finite populations and the sorts of diffusion approximations that are valid for their study, models of migration, kin selection, geneculture coevolution, sexual selection, life-history evolution, the statistics of linkage disequilibrium, and the molecular evolution of repeated DNA sequences and the HLA system in humans. The fourteen contributions are presented in two sections: Part I, Stochastic and Deterministic Genetic Theory, and Part II, Behavior, Ecology, and Evolutionary Genetics. Marcus W. Feldman provides an introduction to each part. The contributors are J. G. Bodmer, W. F. Bodmer, L. L. Cavalli Sforza, F. B. Christiansen, C. Cockerham, W. J. Ewens, M. W. Feldman, J. H. Gillespie, R. R. Hudson, N. L. Kaplan, S. Lessard, U. Liberman, M.E.N. Majerus, P. O'Donald, J. Roughgarden, S. Tavar, M. K. Uyenoyama, G. A. Watterson, and B. Weir. Originally published in 1989. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Download or read book The Mathematics of Darwin s Legacy written by Fabio A. C. C. Chalub and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-06-24 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book presents a general overview of mathematical models in the context of evolution. It covers a wide range of topics such as population genetics, population dynamics, speciation, adaptive dynamics, game theory, kin selection, and stochastic processes. Written by leading scientists working at the interface between evolutionary biology and mathematics the book is the outcome of a conference commemorating Charles Darwin's 200th birthday, and the 150th anniversary of the first publication of his book "On the origin of species". Its chapters vary in format between general introductory and state-of-the-art research texts in biomathematics, in this way addressing both students and researchers in mathematics, biology and related fields. Mathematicians looking for new problems as well as biologists looking for rigorous description of population dynamics will find this book fundamental.
Download or read book Evolutionary Dynamics written by Martin A. Nowak and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2006-09-29 with total page 390 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At a time of unprecedented expansion in the life sciences, evolution is the one theory that transcends all of biology. Any observation of a living system must ultimately be interpreted in the context of its evolution. Evolutionary change is the consequence of mutation and natural selection, which are two concepts that can be described by mathematical equations. Evolutionary Dynamics is concerned with these equations of life. In this book, Martin A. Nowak draws on the languages of biology and mathematics to outline the mathematical principles according to which life evolves. His work introduces readers to the powerful yet simple laws that govern the evolution of living systems, no matter how complicated they might seem. Evolution has become a mathematical theory, Nowak suggests, and any idea of an evolutionary process or mechanism should be studied in the context of the mathematical equations of evolutionary dynamics. His book presents a range of analytical tools that can be used to this end: fitness landscapes, mutation matrices, genomic sequence space, random drift, quasispecies, replicators, the Prisoner’s Dilemma, games in finite and infinite populations, evolutionary graph theory, games on grids, evolutionary kaleidoscopes, fractals, and spatial chaos. Nowak then shows how evolutionary dynamics applies to critical real-world problems, including the progression of viral diseases such as AIDS, the virulence of infectious agents, the unpredictable mutations that lead to cancer, the evolution of altruism, and even the evolution of human language. His book makes a clear and compelling case for understanding every living system—and everything that arises as a consequence of living systems—in terms of evolutionary dynamics.
Download or read book Mathematical and Statistical Developments of Evolutionary Theory written by S. Lessard and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mathematical and statistical approaches to evolutionary theory are numerous. The NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI) held at the Universite de Montreal, Montreal, August 3-21, 1987, was an opportunity to review most of the classical approaches and to study the more recent developments. The participation of theoretical biologists and geneticists as well as applied mathematicians and statisticians made possible exchanges of ideas between students and scholars having different views on the subject. These Proceedings contain the lecture notes of seven (7) of the eleven (11) series of lectures that were given. ESS (Evolutionarily Stable Stragety) theory is considered from many perspectives, from a game-theoretic approach to understanding behavior and evolution (W.G.S. Hines), and a systematic classification of properties and patterns of ESS's (C. Cannings) to particular applications of the differential geometry of the Shahshahani metric (E. Akin). Extensions of ESS theory to sexual populations and finite populations, not to mention games between relatives, are presented (W.G.S. Hines). Special attention is given to the classical game called the War of Attrition but with n players and random rewards (C. Cannings). The Shahshahani metric is also used to show the occurrence of cycling in the two-locus, two-allele model (E. Akin). Various inference problems in population genetics are adressed. Procedures to detect and measure selection components and polymorphism (in particular, the Wahlund effect) at one or several loci from mother-offspring combinations in natural populations are discussed at length (F.B. Christiansen).
Download or read book Evolutionary Theory written by Niles Eldredge and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016-09-23 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The natural world is infinitely complex and hierarchically structured, with smaller units forming the components of progressively larger systems: molecules make up cells, cells comprise tissues and organs that are, in turn, parts of individual organisms, which are united into populations and integrated into yet more encompassing ecosystems. In the face of such awe-inspiring complexity, there is a need for a comprehensive, non-reductionist evolutionary theory. Having emerged at the crossroads of paleobiology, genetics, and developmental biology, the hierarchical approach to evolution provides a unifying perspective on the natural world and offers an operational framework for scientists seeking to understand the way complex biological systems work and evolve. Coedited by one of the founders of hierarchy theory and featuring a diverse and renowned group of contributors, this volume provides an integrated, comprehensive, cutting-edge introduction to the hierarchy theory of evolution. From sweeping historical reviews to philosophical pieces, theoretical essays, and strictly empirical chapters, it reveals hierarchy theory as a vibrant field of scientific enterprise that holds promise for unification across the life sciences and offers new venues of empirical and theoretical research. Stretching from molecules to the biosphere, hierarchy theory aims to provide an all-encompassing understanding of evolution and—with this first collection devoted entirely to the concept—will help make transparent the fundamental patterns that propel living systems.
Download or read book Evolution and the Theory of Games written by John Maynard Smith and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1982-10-21 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This 1982 book is an account of an alternative way of thinking about evolution and the theory of games.
Download or read book Evolution of Mathematical Concepts written by Raymond L. Wilder and published by Courier Corporation. This book was released on 2013-01-01 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Accessible to students and relevant to specialists, this remarkable book by a prominent educator offers a unique perspective on the evolutionary development of mathematics. Rather than conducting a survey of the history or philosophy of mathematics, Raymond L. Wilder envisions mathematics as a broad cultural phenomenon. His treatment examines and illustrates how such concepts as number and length were affected by historic and social events. Starting with a brief consideration of preliminary notions, this study explores the early evolution of numbers, the evolution of geometry, and the conquest of the infinite as embodied by real numbers. A detailed look at the processes of evolution concludes with an examination of the evolutionary aspects of modern mathematics.
Download or read book The Mathematical Theory of Selection Recombination and Mutation written by R. Bürger and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2000-11-02 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "It is close to being a masterpiece...could well be the classic presentation of the area." Warren J. Ewens, University of Pennsylvania, USA Population genetics is concerned with the study of the genetic, ecological, and evolutionary factors that influence and change the genetic composition of populations. The emphasis here is on models that have a direct bearing on evolutionary quantitative genetics. Applications concerning the maintenance of genetic variation in quantitative traits and their dynamics under selection are treated in detail. * Provides a unified, self-contained and in-depth study of the theory of multilocus systems * Introduces the basic population-genetic models * Explores the dynamical and equilibrium properties of the distribution of quantitative traits under selection * Summarizes important results from more demanding sections in a comprehensible way * Employs a clear and logical presentation style Following an introduction to elementary population genetics and discussion of the general theory of selection at two or more loci, the author considers a number of mutation-selection models, and derives the dynamical equations for polygenic traits under general selective regimes. The final chapters are concerned with the maintenance of quantitative-genetic variation, the response to directional selection, the evolutionary role of deleterious mutations, and other topics. Graduate students and researchers in population genetics, evolutionary theory, and biomathematics will benefit from the in-depth coverage. This text will make an excellent reference volume for the fields of quantitative genetics, population and theoretical biology.
Download or read book Origination of Organismal Form written by Gerd B. Muller and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2003-01-03 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A more comprehensive version of evolutionary theory that focuses as much on the origin of biological form as on its diversification. The field of evolutionary biology arose from the desire to understand the origin and diversity of biological forms. In recent years, however, evolutionary genetics, with its focus on the modification and inheritance of presumed genetic programs, has all but overwhelmed other aspects of evolutionary biology. This has led to the neglect of the study of the generative origins of biological form. Drawing on work from developmental biology, paleontology, developmental and population genetics, cancer research, physics, and theoretical biology, this book explores the multiple factors responsible for the origination of biological form. It examines the essential problems of morphological evolution—why, for example, the basic body plans of nearly all metazoans arose within a relatively short time span, why similar morphological design motifs appear in phylogenetically independent lineages, and how new structural elements are added to the body plan of a given phylogenetic lineage. It also examines discordances between genetic and phenotypic change, the physical determinants of morphogenesis, and the role of epigenetic processes in evolution. The book discusses these and other topics within the framework of evolutionary developmental biology, a new research agenda that concerns the interaction of development and evolution in the generation of biological form. By placing epigenetic processes, rather than gene sequence and gene expression changes, at the center of morphological origination, this book points the way to a more comprehensive theory of evolution.
