Overview
Evolution is a powerful force that has driven the diversification and propagation of life on Earth. One of the most fascinating aspects of evolution is how it can lead to the emergence of hierarchical organization in biological systems. This research topic explores the computational and theoretical aspects of how natural selection can give rise to hierarchical structures in ecosystems, from the level of genes and organisms to communities and ecosystems.
Information theory provides a principled way to quantify the complexity and agency/individuality in biological systems at different levels of organization. I try to build simple computational models of evolution to characterize the flows of information preferred by natural selection and how they can lead to the emergence of hierarchical organization.