
The 'Adaptive Landscape' has been a central concept in population genetics and evolutionary biology since this powerful metaphor was first formulated by Sewall Wright in 1932. Eighty years later, it has become a central framework in evolutionary quantitative genetics, selection studies in natural populations, and in studies of ecological speciation and adaptive radiations. Recently, the simple concept of adaptive landscapes in two dimensions (genes or traits) has been criticized and several new and more sophisticated versions of the original adaptive landscape evolutionary model have been developed in response. No published volume has yet critically discussed the past, present state, and future prospect of the adaptive landscape in evolutionary biology. This volume brings together prominent historians of science, philosophers, ecologists, and evolutionary biologists, with the aim of discussing the state of the art of the Adaptive Landscape from several different perspectives.
This volume investigates the historical development, current utility, and future theoretical trajectory of the adaptive landscape metaphor in evolutionary biology. Editors Erik Svensson and Ryan Calsbeek assemble a multidisciplinary cohort of historians, philosophers, and biologists to evaluate the model's transition from Sewall Wright's 1932 conceptualization to modern quantitative genetics. The text addresses criticisms regarding the model's dimensionality and explores how contemporary research adapts this framework to study speciation and adaptive radiation.
What You Will Find
Scope Limits
Experts recognize this volume as a comprehensive reference for the evolution of the adaptive landscape concept within the scientific community. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which is intended for researchers and graduate-level students in evolutionary biology.
Page Count:
335
Publication Date:
2012-01-01
Publisher:
OUP Oxford
ISBN-10:
0191631671
ISBN-13:
9780191631672
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