BIOA02H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 19: Banana Slug, Richard Dawkins, General Idea
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BIOA02H3 Full Course Notes
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Organisms are simply vehicles for gene replication, which is achieved through reproduction. Species that do not reproduce would cease to exist. Therefore, reproduction is the basic requirement for the continuation of life and diversity at both genetic and species scales. Individuals who do not reproduce drop out of the gene pool biologically speaking, they contribute nothing to their species. Natural selection operates on the phenotypes of individuals; those individuals with the most successful phenotypes have the most offspring. More offspring = more replication = life win! Fitness is only compared relative to individuals of the same species, and usually in the same population. Despite the definition, we often measure relative fitness in terms of the number of offsprings; we don"t usually track them to maturity. So the meaning of life is have lots of healthy babies. Informs the study of behavioral ecology, or how organisms behave in response to their environments . Organisms are always under pressure to obtain and.
