The Extended Phenotype
The Extended Phenotype is a biological concept introduced by Richard Dawkins in a 1982 book with the same title. The main idea is that phenotype should not be limited to biological processes such as protein biosynthesis or tissue growth, but extended to include all effects that a gene has on its environment, inside or outside of the body of the individual organism.
Dawkins considers the Extended Phenotype to be his principal contribution to evolutionary theory.
Read more about The Extended Phenotype: Genes Synthesize Only Proteins, Genes Affect The Organism’s Environment, Gene-centred View of Life
Famous quotes containing the word extended:
“Whenever there are in any country uncultivated lands and unemployed poor, it is clear that the laws of property have been so far extended as to violate natural right. The earth is given as a common stock for man to labor and live on.... The small landowners are the most precious part of a state.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)