FITNESS CRITERIA
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1281 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Epistemology, ontology or semantics |
There are no absolute fitness criteria. All criteria are related to some characteristics, deemed positive or negative, according to specific aims, but possibly insubstantial or irrelevant from another viewpoint.
As an example, A. JACQUARD observes: “The very expression ”improvement of species“ is perfectly illusory. We did not improve wheat, nor cows, nor horses. We have improved wheat's capacity to use some fertilizers (note: in some regions), cows capacity to produce milk (note: under specific conditions), horses capacity to run fast (note: mainly on race tracks)… But may we really boast about having improved maize or horses, while we have rendered them unable to survive without us?” (1978, p.162).
As to fitness as a criterion of “survival of the fittest”, it does not amount much more than the tautological “survival of the survivors”, the survivors being declared the fittest… because they survived.