The Selfish Gene Terms

Natural selection is the process by which evolution happens. Evolution occurs when entities compete for finite resources in an environment. The entities that succeed in getting the resources are the ones that are the “fittest”… read analysis of Natural Selection

A replicator is any entity that can make copies of itself. Richard Dawkins argues that, in the natural world, the replicator is not the organism or the species, but, rather, little bits of DNA called… read analysis of Replicator

An evolutionarily stable strategy, or an evolutionarily stable state (both of which are abbreviated to “ESS”), exists when the entities that are competing in an environment stay in stable ratios from generation to generation. In… read analysis of Evolutionarily Stable Strategy/State (ESS)

Parental investment is derived from the total amount of resources that an organism has available to use on keeping its offspring alive over the course of the parent’s lifetime. It represents any resource (such as… read analysis of Parental Investment (PI)

Genes are instructions for building embryos. In large part, an embryo looks and acts the way it does because of its genetic programming. The observable effects of a gene in nature are its “phenotypic effects.”… read analysis of Phenotypic Effect

A meme is a catchy idea that circulates in a culture. Richard Dawkins coins the word “meme” by adapting it from the Greek word mimeme, which means “imitate.” He thinks memes jump from brain… read analysis of Meme