A concept for the optimization of nonlinear functions using particle swarm methodology is introduced. The evolution of several paradigms is outlined, and an implementation of one of the paradigms is discussed. Benchmark testing of the paradigm is described, and applications, including nonlinear function optimization and neural network training, are proposed. The relationships between particle swarm optimization and both artificial life and genetic algorithms are described.

Particle swarm optimization

Conservationists are far from able to assist all species under threat, if only for lack of funding. This places a premium on priorities: how can we support the most species at the least cost? One way is to identify 'biodiversity hotspots' where exceptional concentrations of endemic species are undergoing exceptional loss of habitat. As many as 44% of all species of vascular plants and 35% of all species in four vertebrate groups are confined to 25 hotspots comprising only 1.4% of the land surface of the Earth. This opens the way for a 'silver bullet' strategy on the part of conservation planners, focusing on these hotspots in proportion to their share of the world's species at risk.

Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities

A concept for the optimization of nonlinear functions using particle swarm methodology is introduced The evolution of several paradigms is outlined, and an implementation of one of the paradigms is discussed Benchmark testing of the paradigm is described, and applications, including nonlinear function optimization and neural network training, are proposed The relationships between particle swarm optimization and both artificial life and genetic algorithms are described

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Cooperation in organisms, whether bacteria or primates, has been a difficulty for evolutionary theory since Darwin. On the assumption that interactions between pairs of individuals occur on a probabilistic basis, a model is developed based on the concept of an evolutionarily stable strategy in the context of the Prisoner's Dilemma game. Deductions from the model, and the results of a computer tournament show how cooperation based on reciprocity can get started in an asocial world, can thrive while interacting with a wide range of other strategies, and can resist invasion once fully established. Potential applications include specific aspects of territoriality, mating, and disease.

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The Evolution of Cooperation

Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201

The Theory of Island Biogeography

The following represents excerpts from a transcription of the informal discussion that ensued after Stephen Pope and Philip Hefner delivered the preceding papers at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., 20 February 2000. These excerpts are presented with a minimum of editing, to preserve the extemporaneous, informal, oral character of the conversation. The excerpts end with a fragmentary comment by E. O. Wilson, conveying the spirit of the actual conversation, which was halted when the allotted time had elapsed and the sense of the group was that areas had been opened up for further conversation that could not be continued at this meeting.

E. O. Wilson, Stephen Pope, and Philip Hefner: A Conversation

As pointed out by Agosti in a recent letter in TREE [1xEncyclopedia of life: should species description equal gene sequence?. Agosti, D. Trends Ecol. Evol. 2003; 18: 273Abstract | Full Text | Full Text PDF | Scopus (10)See all References][1], images of Pheidole type specimens from Wilson's revision of the New World species of the ant genus Pheidole [2xWilson, E.O. See all References][2] on the Entomology Primary Type Specimen Database of the Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ) at Harvard University were not previously available on the website (http://mcz-28168.oeb.Harvard.edu/mcztypedb.htm). However, there was not a commercial reason for this unavailability. Rather, the images were not included because the new species that they represent were manuscript names until the publication of the treatise in March 2003. With publication, the manuscript names became validly described species that could then be properly included in a type database. The updating of this database is now almost complete, and the images are now available to anyone with access to the web. Harvard University Press raised no objection to posting the Pheidole images on the website, and royalties from the Pheidole treatise are being donated to a fund that supports the MCZ Ant Collection. Since its inception in the early 1990s, the MCZ Entomology Primary Type Specimen Database has been the pioneering effort in digital taxonomy. Few, if any, institutions have matched the dedication and scope of the project, which now provides the taxonomic community with a complete database of >28 000 primary types of insect from the MCZ collection, along with >15 000 high quality images of the types. Recent funding received from the National Science Foundation ensures that imaging of the remainder of type specimens in the MCZ collection will soon be completed.Agosti's observation that four unnamed ant systematists have refused to allow their recent monographs to be included in the AntBase (http://www.antbase.org) compendium of ant systematics literature sidesteps several important issues, particular to each case [1xEncyclopedia of life: should species description equal gene sequence?. Agosti, D. Trends Ecol. Evol. 2003; 18: 273Abstract | Full Text | Full Text PDF | Scopus (10)See all References][1]. The primary obstacle to modern systematics, most museum scientists agree, is inadequate funding and expert personnel, rather than the acquisitiveness of its current practitioners.

Edward O. Wilson

Papers

E. O. Wilson, Stephen Pope, and Philip Hefner: A Conversation

Encyclopedia of life: should species description equal gene sequence? A reply

2 0 Moral Philosophy as Applied Science

Diversity at risk: tropical forests

Social Homeostasis and Flexibility