Come back Marshall, all is forgiven? : Complexity, evolution, mathematics and Marshallian exceptionalism

Marshall was the great synthesiser of neoclassical economics. Yet with his qualified assumption of self-interest, his emphasis on variation in economic evolution and his cautious attitude to the use of mathematics, Marshall differs fundamentally from other leading neoclassical contemporaries. Metaphors inspire more specific analogies and ontological assumptions, and Marshall used the guiding metaphor of Spencerian evolution. But unfortunately, the further development of a Marshallian evolutionary approach was undermined in part by theoretical problems within Spencer's theory. Yet some things can be salvaged from the Marshallian evolutionary vision. They may even be placed in a more viable Darwinian framework.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

"Synergistic selection": A Darwinian frame for the evolution of complexity

Non-Darwinian theories about the emergence and evolution of complexity date back at least to Lamarck, and include those of Herbert Spencer and the "emergent evolution" theorists of the later nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In recent decades, this approach has mostly been espoused by various practitioners in biophysics and complexity theory. However, there is a Darwinian alternative - in essence, an economic theory of complexity - proposing that synergistic effects of various kinds have played an important causal role in the evolution of complexity, especially in the "major transitions". This theory is called the "synergism hypothesis". We posit that otherwise unattainable functional advantages arising from various cooperative phenomena have been favored over time in a dynamic that the late John Maynard Smith characterized and modeled as "synergistic selection". The term highlights the fact that synergistic "wholes" may become interdependent "units" of selection. We provide some historical perspective on this issue, as well as a brief explication of the underlying theory and the concept of synergistic selection, and we describe two relevant models. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Architecture-centric software quality management

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Welfare Impact of Carbon Dioxide Euthanasia on Laboratory Mice and Rats: A Systematic Review

Contains fulltext : 225409.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Background: There has been increased concern about the suitability of CO(2) as a method for euthanasia of laboratory mice and rats, including the potential discomfort, pain or distress that animals may experience prior to loss of consciousness; time to loss of consciousness; best methods for use of CO(2); and the availability of better alternatives. These discussions have been useful in providing new information, but have resulted in significant confusion regarding the acceptability of CO(2) for rodent euthanasia. In some cases, researchers and veterinarians have become uncertain as to which techniques to recommend or use for euthanasia of laboratory mice and rats. Methods: The International Association of Colleges of Laboratory Animal Medicine (IACLAM) convened a taskforce to examine the evidence for adverse welfare indicators in laboratory rats and mice undergoing CO(2) euthanasia using a SYRCLE-registered systematic review protocol. Of 3,772 papers identified through a database search (PubMed, Web of Science, CAB Direct, Agricola, and grey literature) from 1900 to 2017, 37 studies were identified for detailed review (some including more than one species or age group), including 15 in adult mice, 21 in adult rats, and 5 in neonates of both species. Experiments or reports were excluded if they only assessed parameters other than those directly affecting animal welfare during CO(2) induction and/or euthanasia. Results: Study design and outcome measures were highly variable and there was an unclear to high risk of bias in many of the published studies. Changes in the outcome measures evaluated were inconsistent or poorly differentiated. It is likely that repeated exposures to carbon dioxide inhalation are aversive to adult rats and mice, based on avoidance behavior studies; however, this effect is largely indistinguishable from aversion induced by repeated exposures to other inhalant anesthetic gasses. Conclusion: There is insufficient evidence to permit an unbiased assessment of the effect of CO(2) inhalation during euthanasia on welfare indicators in laboratory mice and rats. Additional well-designed, unbiased, and adequately powered studies are needed to accurately assess the welfare of laboratory mice and rats undergoing euthanasia via CO(2) gas

Convergent cultural evolution and multilevel selection: Reply to comments on Janet Landa’s ‘The bioeconomics of homogenous middleman groups as adaptive units: Theory and empirical evidence viewed from a group selection framework’

Cultural diversity, Group selection, Proximate and ultimate causation, Fitness differences, The Law Merchant, K12, P51, Q57, Z1, Z12,