The Objectivity of Chance in the Evolution of Species
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5944/endoxa.39.2017.15439Keywords:
stochastic process, random effect, mutation, replication, recombination, selection processAbstract
In this paper, I analyze different notions of chance which could be appropriate to the genetic processes of replication and recombination as well to the processes of natural selection. I maintain that, in evolution, there are three different types of objective chance processes: an intrinsic chance in DNA replication (which gives rise to spontaneous mutations), a merely combinatory chance in genetic recombination, and a chance that is extrinsic to the stabilizing, directional, and disruptive selection processes of an organism’s phenotype, in virtue of which these are indissolubly integrated into a complex environment, which is permeated by a diversity of contingent, random factors: climatic, atmospheric, geological, and even astronomic factors. Thus, chance is a ubiquitous feature in the evolution of species.
Downloads
References
Avers Ch. (1989). Process and pattern in evolution. N. Y.: Oxford University Press.
Ayala F. J. (2012). Evolución: las grandes cuestiones. Barcelona: Ariel.
Eldredge N.- (1998). The pattern of evolution. N. Y.: Freeeman
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
The authors who publish in this journal must agree to the following terms:
- The authors hold author’s rights and guarantee the journal the right to be the first to publish the work as well as the Creative Commons Attribution License which allows others to share the work as long as they acknowledge the authorship of the work and its initial publication in this journal.
- The authors can establish, on their own, additional agreements for the non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in the journal (for example, placing it in an institutional repository or publishing it in a book), always acknowledging the initial publication in this journal.
- The authors are allowed and encouraged to disseminate their work electronically (for example, in institutional repositories or on their own webpages) before and during the submission process, as this can give rise to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and increased citing of the works published (See The Effect of Open Access).
