> _Sex and Death_, Kim Sterelny and Paul Griffiths, p. 165:
> "Under Wilson's trait group model, group selection also exerts its 
> effects through the greater productivity of altruist groups. Trait 
> groups sooner or later merge into the general population, and the next 
> generation of groups re-forms from that population.  If groups that form 
> from the general population tend to be differentiatied, with altruists 
> associating with altruists and freeloaders with freeloaders, then group 
> selection acts through altruistic groups pumping more individuals into 
> the general population from which new groups form, not just through the 
> differential extinction of groups."

JE:-
Since Darwinian fitness and thus organism
fitness altruism (OFA) remain undefined 
in _absolute_ fitness terms in the above, 
it remains impossible to understand 
what the authors are talking 
about. A gene, a "trait group", a group 
of infertile forms and group of fertile 
forms have all become levels of selection
allowing promiscuous and irrefutable
multi levels of selection. When one level
fails no matter, just jump to another
level above or below to get over "the 
problem". Such causative pragmatism is
about as "scientific" as palming a pea 
under one of three walnut shells in some 
wild west gambling saloon just to make 
a quick and dirty dollar..
 
Regards,

John Edser
Independent Researcher

PO Box 266
Church Pt
NSW 2105
Australia

edser{at}tpg.com.au
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