We consider the broader strokes of evolution, and the finer details of "fitness" and "design".

1. Notions of evolution.
   • Wealth of thinkers: Mayr, Gould, Dawkins, Margulis, and others.
   • The word is not a static place; historic records tell us that.
   • Temporally, spacially, and physiologically diverse creatures appear related.
   • Some signs of "movement" in short time intervals.
   • Genomic data often (but not always) backs up the record.
2. Notions of the blind watchmaker.
   • Life is very complex; it could not have evolved randomly.
   • Evolutionary pressure is non-random and temporally local.
   • Evolution is the accumulation of these small changes.
   • Ultimately, very powerful concept.
   • Are we are fooling ourselves: do we think this has an overall design or goal?

Resources needed for this class:

• The Blind Watchmaker.
• The single step selection applet
• The continuous selection applet
• The Blind Watchmaker applet.

Resources needed for the next class:

• An overview of genetic algorithms, as used in computation.

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These items are Java applets, and require Java to be installed on your machine.