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If you're looking at all of the code that evolution has ever written, then yes, I suppose you could say that most of it is very poor. The fraction of code that
by markerdmann 17y ago
If you're looking at all of the code that evolution has ever written, then yes, I suppose you could say that most of it is very poor. The fraction of code that survives and propagates, however, is awe-inspiringly beautiful.
If you're looking for some insight into what makes it so beautiful, The Selfish Gene is an excellent place to start.
- amichail 17y agoWhat evidence do you have that the code that survives and propagates is elegant (i.e., at the DNA sequence level)? In genetic programming, the products of evolution on a computer are completely incomprehensible. What makes natural evolution any different?
- markerdmann 17y agoIf someone who is not a programmer looks at your code and pronounces it utterly incomprehensible, does that make it inelegant? What exactly would "evidence" of something as subjective as "elegance" look like?
- amichail 17y agoBTW, code growth seems important in some cases for evolution on a computer: http://www2.cs.uidaho.edu/~tsoule/cs472fall05/AlifePeaks2.pdf http://www2.cs.uidaho.edu/~tsoule/cs472fall05/AlifePeaks2.pd...