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Politics : Evolution -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Solon who wrote (10042)	11/19/2010 5:24:12 PM
From: Jacques Chitte	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 69300

I agree that her theories have that special sort of meaty beauty that makes an impassioned observer (like myself...) say Wow. I also agree that she helps add some substance to de Chardin's evocative but slightly diaphanous Gaia principle. Where I am slower to agree is the idea that cooperation trumps competition. I read a lovely article many moons ago regarding using the Prisoner's Dilemma to model cooperative v. selfish behaviors in groups, and what blend of cooperation v. defection (the rat bastard move in a Prisoner's Dilemma instance) leads to maxima in group size and health. Where am I going with this? (To the fridge. For a beer. Microbrew Pilsner; want one?) What the Margulis concept does for me is suggest that early in the story of life, bacteria and their archaean kin could develop the basic sensorimotor machinery (flagella, rhodopsin, chemotactic receptors, yadaayadaa) and then true eukaryotes, probably protozoa at first and then the mysterious ur-critters of the Ediacara and earlier ... could evolve in fast forward by exploring combinatorial symbiosis. Significant coolness factor imo. <edit> I am surprised and pleased that the SI Spelchekr didn't highlight "sensorimotor". It did however raise its figurative eyebrow at the other biochemical terms like rhodopsin and chemotactic and microbrew. And Yadaayadaa, which of course is Arabic for "My God will wipe the floor with yours."