While reading this board, I am currently playing with (being paid to research) the evolution of diversity in grasslands - in attempt to understand how they work. Nar then, its all done on this here computer in a model. But the point is - we never told the computer about evolution, we just gave it some simple rules about how things repoduce, compete and die - and amazing - evolution appears. Things change over time, just like in real life. Species evolve that are simliar to real ones. Does this make me God and put an end to the other tread? As I say to r kid.. You are not Jesus Christ Just the son of God!
I have a 30 year old Reader's Digest book of British Birds which describes magpies as "shy farmland birds" and goes on to say that they've just begun appearing in London's parks. Today, in many gardens, the ubiquitous black and white ******* has all but replaced the finches and small insect eaters upon whose eggs and young it feasts every spring. Evolution never sleeps.
yes Already done Y. Goch, and Topping,C.J. (2001) Trait evolution in an individual-based model of herbacious vegetation. Evolutionary Ecology, 15: 15-35. But we are hoping to have a crack at Nature with this stuff.:S
No body No one ever funds my research. But why - because - what diversity does is the biggest question in biology in my book. There is no agreement if you get more yield from more or less species. If you can get more yield from more species, you can develop an agriculture that feeds more people and still supports wildlife. in theory!
RE: No body I thought most Uni research was commissioned by outside organisations. Isn't that the real point behind publications i.e get your name in the public eye?
most is Most uni research is directly funded, but fiddling with computer models does not need much funding. Plus the better research departments get a block of money, just based on the quality of their research. Hence you publish to prove your research is good to ensure this funding. and to tell the wider world what you have found. or you can come on here and tell people.
A computer model you say This computer model. Is it a piece of software programmed by a human? Does it work to a set of rules? Were these rules laid down by a human who may have pre-set ideas?
As so often Jay, you make a good point. But the rules are very simple. like: how tall does the plant grow How wide does it grow does it produce seeds you allow the numbers which define these to mutate and you get evolution. Where is the scope for the pro-evolution bias you imply?
RE: As so often Jay, you make a good point. Who chooses which plants and gepgraphical areas/seasons to study?
the starting plants do not matter much the environment - depends on what we are looking at. At the moment I am looking at altering fertility on the evolution of diversity. because most farms are now high fertility and low diversity, but they have not had much time to evolve. which reminds me - someone did fund the work in the start. it was designed to look at the effect of set-aside, but over the short term not the evolutionary scale.
RE: As so often Jay, you make a good point. And why isn't the influence of a superior being included ? eh ?
RE: As so often Jay, you make a good point. Without seeing the software in question it would be folly of me to suggest there is a pro-evolution bias. Even if I saw the programme running I doubt I'd understand it and it would get me no nearer the original code, which I certainly wouldn't understand. It sounds to me like the user can alter a number of variables. However, I was suggesting that evolution could be part of the actual code rather than dependent on any input from the user. Pure speculation of course, but not something that should be dismissed.
again a fair enough comment But evolution is not written into the code. it just emerges from the very simple grow, reproduce die rules. which was the point of my first post
hmmmm If that occurs then the programmer must have made some allowance for evolution otherwise the software would crash. If allowance for this phenomena was made then the possibility of evolution was set in to the code form the start.
