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In the Light of Evolution Volume I: Adaptation and Complex Design (2007) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 23-24

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From page 23...
... is its potential to perform a quantifiable operation. starting with that premise, they formally define a metric -- functional information -- that basically describes the fraction of all possible configurations of the system that possess a specified degree of function.
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From page 24...
... the suite of evolutionary pathways potentially available to any species. Wilkins proposes that in addition to these conventionally recog nized inhibitors of phenotypic evolution, inherent constraints also operate at the levels of interacting genes and complex genetic networks.
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Key Terms

  • functional information
  • genetic networks
  • genetic network
  • natural selection
  • evolutionary trajectories

  • specified degree
  • molecular genetics


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