Oct 8 - Evolution Flashcards
Who said:
“It takes…a mind debauched by learning to carry the process of making the natural seem strange, so far as to ask for the why of any instinctive human act.”
William James
Who proposed this model?
Aristotle
Darwin believed:
all life is formed through _______ _______. For this to occur there must be…
“Darwin loves Random Dogs with long Hair”
Darwin believed:
all life is formed through natural selection. For this to occur there must be…
- ** Random variation**
- Differential reproduction
- Heredity
How natural selection works: For natural selection to occur there must be…
- Random variation: ________ differ on some trait.
- Differential reproduction: The probability of an individual producing viable offspring depends upon whether the individual ___ ___ _____.
- Heredity: The _____ is passed along from parents to offspring (through genes).
Individuals
has the trait
trait
An organism’s ______ is its probability of successfully passing on its genes.
An organism’s fitness is its probability of successfully passing on its genes.
An organisms fitness is its ability to pass on _____.
Fitness is defined ______ to a particular environment.
An organisms fitness is its ability to pass on genes.
Fitness is defined relative to a particular environment.
What makes something an adaptation?
- It must be ________ (that is, passed along from parents to offspring).
- Considering all of its consequences, it has to yield a ___ _______ in fitness.
- It must ______ improve fitness in the environment in which it arose.
* “Inheriting reliable nets helps adaptation”*
What makes something an adaptation?
- It must be inherited (that is, passed along from parents to offspring).
- Considering all of its consequences, it has to yield a net increase in fitness.
- It must reliably improve fitness in the environment in which it arose.
Not every feature is a straight forward adaptation…
- • ________ and _______ ____ produce random changes
- • _______ are by-products of adaptations that themselves have no adaptive value
- • ______ features were adaptations to some previous environment but no longer improve fitness because the environment changed
- • __________ (or co-opted adaptations) are features that were selected for one function but that now perform another function
Not every feature is a straight forward adaptation…
- mutations and genetic drift produce random changes
- Spandrels are by-products of adaptations that themselves have no adaptive value
- Vestigial features were adaptations to some previous environment but no longer improve fitness because the environment changed
- Exaptations (or co-opted adaptations) are features that were selected for one function but that now perform another function
__________ evolve in small increments via gene mutations.
Complex adaptations can take many generations to evolve, and each intermediate step must ______ _______.
Adaptations evolve in small increments via gene mutations.
Complex adaptations can take many generations to evolve, and each intermediate step must improve fitness.
Selection pressures usually need to be ______ over multiple generations.
Selection pressures usually need to be reliable over multiple generations.
Misconceptions about evolution:
- Evolution proceeds towards a ____ (_________)
- Evolution produces ideal ________ to problems (“______ ________” versus “_________ _________”)
• Evolution is a _____ ________ (the __-_____ fallacy
[or “________ fallacy”])
“Evolution does not have goals or solutions to moral justifications.”
Misconceptions about evolution:
- Evolution proceeds towards a goal (teleology)
- Evolution produces ideal solutions to problems (“fitness maximizers” versus “adaptation executors”)
- Evolution is a moral justification (the is-ought fallacy
[or “naturalistic fallacy”])
“Evolution does not have goals or solutions to moral justifications.”
Evolutionary psychology:
Evolutionary psychologists are interested in studying human ________, and claim that part of what defines a species is its _______.
Evolutionary psychology:
Evolutionary psychologists are interested in studying human behavior, and claim that part of what defines a species is its behavior.
Two ways of incorporating evolutionary concepts into psychology:
- the ___________ approach compares species and looks for homologous features that reflect common descent
(basic emotions; stress responses; etc.) - the ____________ approach relates species- typical features to “adaptive problems” in ancestral environments
(jealousy; cheater detection; etc.)
Two ways of incorporating evolutionary concepts into psychology:
- the phylogenetic approach compares species and looks for homologous features that reflect common descent (basic emotions; stress responses; etc.)
- the adaptationist approach relates species- typical features to “adaptive problems” in ancestral environments (jealousy; cheater detection; etc.)
phylogentic = features
adaptionist = adaptive problems
Five principles of Evolutionary Psychology:
- The brain is a ________ system.
- ______ ______ were selected to solve problems in the environment of evolutionary adaptedness (EEA).
- Tasks that we subjectively experience as simple may actually be very ________.
- Different ______ ______ are specialized for solving different problems this is known as __________
- Our minds are adapted to solve _____ ___ problems.
Five principles of Evolutionary Psychology:
- The brain is a physical system.
- Neural circuits were selected to solve problems in the environment of evolutionary adaptedness (EEA).
- Tasks that we subjectively experience as simple may actually be very complex.
- Different neural circuits are specialized for solving different problems (“modularity”).
- Our minds are adapted to solve stone age problems.
