Adaptive Radiations Across the Information Landscape
The new synthesis; wherein we have multi-dimensional selection acting on phenotypes, products of development, and followed by genes; has revolutionised how we think about the major themes of evolution biology. However, what is lost in this new synthesis is clarity as to how this rather more complicated view fits into evolutionary ecology. How does the information landscape relate to adaptive radiations? Can we model phenotypic diversification using an information theoretic perspective on the socio-ecological environment? What phylogenetic information dynamic processes mediate radiations? How can we improve cladistic methods to account for the new synthesis?
The Evolution of Intelligence and Cognitive Diversity
What socio-ecological contexts select for intelligence? How do we model intelligence in evolutionary ecology? How can we account for trade-offs between intelligence and other methods of uncertainty management and belief assessment? How does intelligence differ functionally from these other methods?
The Role of Cognitive Diversity in Societies
How does variation in cognitive and behavioural phenotypes influence societal structures? How do animals deal with the strategic uncertainties this diversity must generate in relationships and societies? By what evolutionary and developmental path does this variation emerge? What are the origins of cognitive diversity in human societies?