All living things are remarkably complex, yet their DNA is unstable,
undergoing countless random mutations over generations. Despite this
instability, most animals do not grow two heads or die, plants continue
to thrive, and bacteria continue to divide. Robustness and Evolvability
in Living Systems tackles this perplexing paradox. The book explores
why genetic changes do not cause organisms to fail catastrophically and
how evolution shapes organisms' robustness. Andreas Wagner looks at this
problem from the ground up, starting with the alphabet of DNA, the
genetic code, RNA, and protein molecules, moving on to genetic networks
and embryonic development, and working his way up to whole organisms. He
then develops an evolutionary explanation for robustness.
Wagner shows how evolution by natural selection preferentially finds and
favors robust solutions to the problems organisms face in surviving and
reproducing. Such robustness, he argues, also enhances the potential for
future evolutionary innovation. Wagner also argues that robustness has
less to do with organisms having plenty of spare parts (the redundancy
theory that has been popular) and more to do with the reality that
mutations can change organisms in ways that do not substantively affect
their fitness.
Unparalleled in its field, this book offers the most detailed analysis
available of all facets of robustness within organisms. It will appeal
not only to biologists but also to engineers interested in the design of
robust systems and to social scientists concerned with robustness in
human communities and populations.
