More about how evolution works: multicellularity (Evolution)

by dhw, Monday, October 24, 2016, 13:11 (2950 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: If this is all true, it’s a huge step in our understanding of how evolution happened. The transition from single cell to multi-cellular sounds considerably simpler if the mechanism was already there from the start. Why bother? How about an in-built (perhaps God-given) drive for survival and/or improvement?

DAVID: I call it a drive for complexity, since bacteria show it is not necessary, which your approach implies.

dhw: Survival is necessary, improvement is desirable and understandable if the possibility is there. Complexity for the sake of complexity seems to me to be pointless.

DAVID: Multicellularity is very complex and not an improvement on the easy livability present in bacteria. Again, why bother?

Endosymbiosis is a process that is beneficial to both organisms. Benefit = improvement in my book. As environments changed, new challenges and opportunities arose. The challenges required adaptation, but the opportunities enabled improvement. I’m surprised that you think “livability” is the only criterion for improvement.