>I have a suggestion: Let's develop a list of known mechanisms which can
>(a) increase genome size and/or (b) increase an organism's number of
>interacting metabolic pathways. Then, when someone offers a definition
>for "information" or "complexity," this list may prove useful
>in arguing *specifically* whether some of those listed mechanisms --- or
>some combination of them --- is capable of meeting those definitions of
>"increased information" or "increased complexity."
>
>I'll get the ball rolling. I would appreciate anyone adding to this
>list of mechanisms, or providing specific examples of these mechanisms
>occurring in nature (both examples which have been *observed* and
>examples which can be reasonably inferred from data). Also, feel free
>to suggest better definitions and explanations for items on the list
>below.
>
>This list may not settle the debate, but it will at least give us a
>handle on the repertoire of available evolutionary mechanisms.
>
>
>1) Mechanisms above the species level:
>--------------------------------------
>1a) Speciation. When a species population splits into two or more
>reproductively isolated groups, and both groups survive and drift apart
>genetically, the total number of different genes in the environment
>increases.
Are you suggesting that a subset has more information that a set? I do not
understand your argument here. If I choose two subsets from a set, how do
the two sets have more information that the original set? IF two parents
have ten children, do the ten children contain more information than the
parents? I would like you to quantify your illustration with some concrete
examples where these kinds of measurements have been done. Unless you can
cite specific examples that show DNA with more information in the offspring
than in the parents, you are just arm-waving. The same result could be
obtained by a decrease in information in one or both groups. Likewise teh
same results could be obtained with no increase in information if genes
already present in the parent, but not expressed began to be expressed.
Unless you can show your results are neither of the above, you have not
demonstrated an increase in information, just a change in expression. The
same criteria should be applied to all examples.
Art
http://biology.swau.edu