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From: sa209@utb.shv.hb.se (Claes Andersson)
Subject: Re: Lamarckian Evolution
Message-ID: <1995Feb1.200012.19562@gdunix.gd.chalmers.se>
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References: <1995Jan18.165850.75699@ucl.ac.uk> <3ghoed$6s1@laplace.ee.latrobe.edu.au>
Date: Thu, 2 Feb 1995 02:18:24 GMT
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khorsell@ee.latrobe.edu.au (Kym Horsell) wrote:
>In article <1995Jan18.165850.75699@ucl.ac.uk> Chris Harris <charris@cs.ucl.ac.uk> writes:
>>If Lamarckian evolution is a possibility (and I might as well add here
>>that I don't consider it so) then how do its exponents explain the
>>amazing changes it must make to our genomes.
>
>Ah yes the old "I can't find the mechanism therefore the phenomenon can't
>happen". Unfortunately the history of science shows this is a very
>shakey form of reasoning indeed.

Don't you see that what your saying is like:
"If you are going to search a 30 dimensional matrix for something, it would
be faster to know it is and just pick it than using a GA for it."

That is true but in this case anyone will agree that we use the GA in order to
find the value, the "picking it out" is therefor not a candidate solution.

 What I'm saying is that Lamarckian evolution apart for being useless (if you
get hurt, your offspring inherits a wound!) is impossible. Your refer to the
history of science... The same has also proved that problems cannot just be
by-passed. If you want to find something in a matrix you don't know where
because if you did, you wouldn't have to look for it.

 And once again: Active control between, for example, a number of types of
gametes isn't Lamarckian evolution. Inheriting a scar or a wound or well trained
muscles are.

Claes Andersson. University of Bors. Sweden
