| Title | Strange loops in evolution and learning |
|---|---|
| Speaker | A/Prof Janet Wiles |
| Date | Thursday, 15th August 2002 |
| Time | 11:10 -- 12:00 |
| Venue | Computer Science - Room 152 |
| Abstract | Scientific theories typically make sense of phenomena at a given level of explanation. Occasionally, phenomena that seem to belong to one level unexpectedly influence an entirely different one. These interactions are strange loops. In evolution and learning, one such strange loop, the Baldwin effect, was proposed over a century ago, and has been studied computationally for the past 15 years. In this study, we use computational techniques to explore a second strange loop, which we call genetic redistribution. In this study we use evolutionary computation simulations to explore the thesis that masking and unmasking can transfer dependence from one set of genes to many sets, and thereby integrate the whole complex of genes. We use Terrence Deacon's example of the loss of the primate gene for vitamin C showing a redistribution effect, from a specific gene for vitamin C to a complex of genes required for acquiring it from the environment. Both the Baldwin and the redistribution effect can be considered strange loops in the interactions between genotype and phenotype in evolution. Implications for the evolutionary effects of language will also be discussed if time permits. |
| About the speaker | Janet Wiles is Associate Professor in the School of Psychology and School of Information Technology & Electrical Engineering at the University of Queensland. She is the Director of the Cognitive Science Program and a Co-director of the Centre for Research in Language Processing and Linguistics. Her research interests centre on cognitive modeling of human memory, language and reasoning, using neural network and evolutionary computation techniques. Application areas also include complex systems, biology and data mining. |
For more information on this seminar, please email: Associate Professor Janet Wiles
For information on our seminar program, suggestions for seminars, or mailing list updates, please email: seminars@cs.adfa.edu.au or see: http://www.cs.adfa.edu.au/seminars/2003/
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