Document Type
Article
Publication Date
3-1-2017
Originally Published In
Am Nat. 2017 Apr;189(4):345-353. doi: 10.1086/690937.
Abstract
Evolutionary biology is undergirded by an extensive and impressive set of mathematical models. Yet only one result, Fisher’s theorem about selection and fitness, is generally accorded the status of a fundamental theorem. I argue that although its fundamental status is justified by its simplicity and scope, there are additional results that seem similarly fundamental. I suggest that the most fundamental theorem of evolution is the Price equation, both because of its simplicity and broad scope and because it can be used to derive four other familiar results that are similarly fundamental: Fisher’s average-excess equation, Robertson’s secondary theorem of natural selection, the breeder’s equation, and Fisher’s fundamental theorem. These derivations clarify both the relationships behind these results and their assumptions. Slightly less fundamental results include those for multivariate evolution and social selection. A key feature of fundamental theorems is that they have great simplicity and scope, which are often achieved by sacrificing perfect accuracy. Quantitative genetics has been more productive of fundamental theorems than population genetics, probably because its empirical focus on unknown genotypes freed it from the tyranny of detail and allowed it to focus on general issues.
Recommended Citation
Queller, David C., "Fundamental Theorems of Evolution" (2017). Biology Faculty Publications & Presentations. 132.
https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/bio_facpubs/132
Embargo Period
2-28-2018
Comments
© 2017 by The University of Chicago. David C. Queller, "Fundamental Theorems of Evolution," The American Naturalist 189, no. 4 (April 2017): 345-353.
DOI: 10.1086/690937