A Comparison of Evolutionary Activity in Artificial Evolving Systems and in the Biosphere

Bedau and Packard [7] devised an approach to quantifying the adaptive phenomena in artificial systems. We use this approach to define two statistics: cumulative evolutionary activity and mean cumulative evolutionary activity. Then we measure the dynamics of cumulative evolutionary activity, mean cumulative evolutionary activity and diversity, on an evolutionary time scale, in two artificial systems and in the biosphere as reflected in the fossil record. We also measure these statistics in selectively neutral analogues of the artificial models. Comparing these data prompts us to draw three conclusions: (i) evolutionary activity statistics do measure continual adaptive success, (ii) evolutionary activity statistics can be compared in artificial systems and in the biosphere, and (iii) there is an arrow of increasing cumulative evolutionary activity in the biosphere but not in the artificial models of evolution. The third conclusion is quantitative evidence that the artificial evolving systems are qualitatively different from the biosphere.

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