On evolution and the "physical Baldwin effect"
This may be obvious to a evolutionary scientist, but the other day I was thinking that perhaps evolution is not just about random mutations that are "selected" by environmental pressure: perhaps a mutation provides only a slight phenotypical advantage, but this mutation may have other phenotypical effects, perhaps visible but not providing any advantage (or disadvantage). Now, the interesting thing is this: such phenotypical expression may end up being associated (in the minds of the animals) to the fact that the individual does have a true phenotypical advantage. Then, an unrelated expression will effectively have some reproductive advantage, and genes that enhance this feature (even if these are not the ones providing a direct advantage) will end up being selected for. I am thinking for instance about the colored shapes of a peackok's tail... to generate a form in the shape of an "eye", there must be a complex process of diffusion during the emb