A Paradoxical Evolutionary Mechanism in Stochastically Switching Environments

Sci Rep. 2016 Oct 14:6:34889. doi: 10.1038/srep34889.

Abstract

Organisms with environmental sensors that guide survival are considered more likely to be favored by natural selection if they possess more accurate sensors. In this paper, we develop a theoretical model which shows that under certain conditions of environmental stochasticity, selection actually favors sensors of lower accuracy. An analogy between this counter-intuitive phenomenon and the well-known Parrondo's paradox is suggested.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biological Evolution*
  • Computer Simulation
  • Environment*
  • Game Theory*
  • Humans
  • Models, Theoretical*
  • Selection, Genetic*