On the Origin of Autonomy A New Look at the Major Transitions in Evolution /

• Main Author: Rosslenbroich, Bernd (Author)
• Corporate Author: SpringerLink (Online service)
• Format: Electronic eBook
• Language: English
• Published: Cham : Springer International Publishing : Imprint: Springer, 2014.
• Series: History, Philosophy and Theory of the Life Sciences, 5
• Subjects: Philosophy.; History.; Biology > Philosophy.; Evolutionary biology.; Philosophy of Biology.; Evolutionary Biology.; History of Science.

This volume describes features of biological autonomy and integrates them into the recent discussion of factors in evolution. In recent years ideas about major transitions in evolution are undergoing a revolutionary change. They include questions about the origin of evolutionary innovation, their ge...

Table of Contents:

• What is the outcome of evolution?
• The problem of macroevolutionary trends
• The concept of biological autonomy
• The major transitions in early evolution
• The Cambrian explosion and thereafter
• Fluid management in animals
• Reproduction
• Nervous systems and the flexibility of movements
• Endothermy
• The evolution of brains and behavior: is there a trend?
• The evolution of man
• Conclusion and implications.