Cambrian Explosion Program

Glenn.Morton@ORYX.COM
Mon 17 Jul 1995 14:14 CT

Robert Van de Water wrote:

"Glenn's chaotic behavior arises because the GENOME of the offspring is a
function of the Morphology of the parent instead of the GENOME of the
offspring being a function of the GENOME of the PARENT only. He has combined
the two functions g and f into one fucntion and, as a consequence his genome
behaves chaotically."

Let me explain this again, Robert. X(a) and Y(a) represent the genome. The
variables x & y are used to determine morphology. There is no combination of
morphology with genome. The computer treats these variables separately with
separate memory locations. I fully agree that the basic code would have been
better if the x,y of the morphology had been reset to the same value at each
step, but in the pascal code, which I posted (and sent a copy to you and you
haven't used) does not have the problem you are talking about. And even
without that problem, the program creates chaotic morphologies.Besides it is
the pascal code which made the executables that everyone is running.

Robert wrote:

"The critical flaw in the program is in the following line:

Y = ABS(COS(2*(Y-Y(A))/3))

Where Y is playing the role of both genome of the offspring and the
mrorphology of the parent. (This is true for x also).

Glenn's screen creatures have no notion of physically realistic heredity and
his simulation is, for that reason, biologically meaningless."

I wish I could agree with you but as I said earlier in another post, Y in the
program is separate, with a separate memory location, from Y(A). (similarly
for x and x(a).) The genome is Y(a), X(a). These values are mutated in
subroutine 1000 in the basic code and procedure newset in the pascal code.
x and y are not reset to the same starting point in the basic code but they
are in the pascal code. x and y are not mutated in each cycle and thus are not
part of the genome.x and y are calculated from the mapping function acting on
the genome. The mapping function determines the sequences of numbers x,y by
measuring the difference between the genomic value and the morphologic value.
The morphologic values are what they are, because mathematically they follow
an orbit in 8 dimensional space projected onto a 2 dimensional plane. The
genome x(a) and y(a) define the orbit. x,y are the current locations of the
test particle in that orbit.

I stand by what I say about my code. By the way, how is your nosehair
simulation of life program coming along?

glenn