In the Light of Evolution: Volume 1. Adaptation and Complex Design
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In December 2006, the National Academy of Sciences sponsored a colloquium (featured as part of the Arthur M. Sackler Colloquia series) on "Adaptation and Complex Design" to synthesize recent empirical findings and conceptual approaches towards understanding the evolutionary origins and maintenance of complex adaptations. Darwin's elucidation of natural selection as a creative natural force was a monumental achievement in the history of science, but a century and a half later some religious believers still contend that biotic complexity registers conscious supernatural design. In this book, modern scientific perspectives are presented on the evolutionary origin and maintenance of complex phenotypes including various behaviors, anatomies, and physiologies. After an introduction by the editors and an opening historical and conceptual essay by Francisco Ayala, this book includes 14 papers presented by distinguished evolutionists at the colloquium. The papers are organized into sections covering epistemological approaches to the study of biocomplexity, a hierarchy of topics on biological complexity ranging from ontogeny to symbiosis, and case studies explaining how complex phenotypes are being dissected in terms of genetics and development.
Arthur M. Sackler Biography viiPreface to the In the Light of Evolution Series xiiiPreface to In the Light of Evoluion I: Adaptation and Complex Design xvIntroductory Essay 1Darwin's Greatest Discovery: Design Without Designer Francisco J. Ayala 3Epistemological Approaches to Biocomplexity Assessment 23Functional Information and the Emergence of Biocomplexity Robert M. Hazen Patrick L. Griffin James M. Carothers Jack W. Szostak 25The Theory of Facilitated Variation John Gerhart Marc Kirschner 45Between "Design" and "Bricolage": Genetic Networks, Levels of Selection, and Adaptive Evolution Adam S. Wilkins 65The Frailty of Adaptive Hypotheses for the Origins of Organismal Complexity Michael Lynch 83From Individual Ontogeny to Symbiosis: A Hierarchy of Complexity 105Emerging Principles of Regulatory Evolution Benjamin Prud'homme Nicolas Gompel Sean B. Carroll 109Evolution of Individuality During the Transition from Unicellular to Multicellular Life Richard E. Michod 129Insect Societies as Divided Organisms: The Complexities of Purpose andCross-Purpose Joan E. Strassmann David C. Queller 145Symbiosis as an Adaptive Process and Source of Phenotypic Complexity Nancy A. Moran 165Case Studies: Dissecting Complex Phenotypes 183Adaptive Evolution of Color Vision as Seen Through the Eyes of Butterflies Francesca D. Frentiu Gary D. Bernard Cristina I. Cuevas Marilou P. Sison-Mangus Kathleen L. Prudic Adriana D. Briscoe 187Plant Domestication, a Unique Opportunity to Identify the Genetic Basis of Adaptation Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra Peter L. Morrell Brandon S. Gaut 205An Experimental Test of Evolutionary Trade-Offs During Temperature Adaptation Albert F. Bennett Richard E. Lenski 225Two Routes to Functional Adaptation: Tibetan and Andean High-Altitude Natives Cynthia M. Beall 239On the Origin and Evolutionary Diversification of Beetle Horns Douglas J. Emlen Laura Corley Lavine Ben Ewen-Campen 257Concluding Essay 283Biological Design in Science Classrooms Eugenie C. Scott Nicholas J. Matzke 285References 305Index 345
