Mechanisms of Evolution

The book introduces fresh ideas about biological and cultural evolution united in a set of common mechanisms. The principle of natural selection is analyzed especially regarding its possible applications to human culture, language and science. The concept of complexity has been given an operational definition that is found to be prevalent all over evolutionary history, thus suggesting a progressive evolutionary course.

So this book thus builds on a unique discovery of a relation between the developmental and evolutionary processes and presents several novel mechanisms common to biological and cultural evolution in the context of complexity.

• Evolution, Complexity and Progress
• The Discovery of a General Pattern of Life and Culture
• Introduction
• The Discovery of Evolution
• A Pattern in Evolution
• Processes of Evolution and Development
• The Principle of Selection
• Cultural Evolution
• The Evolution of Science
• Complexity
• The Measurement of Complexity
• Accelerating Evolution
• Mechanisms of Evolution
• Progress
• Summary