Quiz questions
What is Richard Dawkins' central argument in The Selfish Gene about the primary unit of natural selection?
- Genes (replicators) are the primary unit, and organisms are 'vehicles' they build to survive and replicate
- Individual organisms are the primary beneficiaries of selection, so selection favors organism-level traits
- Species are the main units of selection, with traits evolving for the good of the species
- Natural selection primarily optimizes ecosystems rather than genes or organisms
How does Dawkins distinguish 'replicators' from 'vehicles'?
- Replicators are genes that are copied; vehicles are organisms that carry and express those genes
- Replicators are organisms that reproduce; vehicles are the physical traits produced by genes
- Replicators are environments that select traits; vehicles are genes that mutate
- Replicators are cultural ideas, while vehicles are biological evolution processes
Which formulation summarizes Hamilton's rule as used to explain kin-selected altruism in the book?
- An altruistic act evolves when the benefit to the actor exceeds the cost to the recipient
- Altruism evolves when individuals share no genetic relatedness
- An altruistic behavior can be favored when c < r × b (cost to actor < relatedness × benefit to recipient)
- Altruism only evolves through group selection, not kin selection
What game-theoretic insight does Dawkins use to explain how cooperation can persist despite temptation to cheat?
- In one-shot games, cooperation always outcompetes defection
- In iterated interactions, reciprocal strategies such as 'tit-for-tat' can sustain cooperation
- Random behavior produces the stable cooperation observed in nature
- Cheating is always eliminated because it is never advantageous
What is a 'meme' according to Dawkins' final chapter?
- A cultural unit of information that replicates by imitation, analogous to genes
- A genetic mutation that produces humorous behavior
- An individual organism specialized for cultural transmission
- A statistical model for predicting gene frequencies
Active recall prompts
What is Richard Dawkins' central argument in The Selfish Gene about the primary unit of natural selection?
How does Dawkins distinguish 'replicators' from 'vehicles'?
Which formulation summarizes Hamilton's rule as used to explain kin-selected altruism in the book?
What game-theoretic insight does Dawkins use to explain how cooperation can persist despite temptation to cheat?
What is the main idea of "Why Are People?", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "The Replicators", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "The Gene Machine", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "Replicators and Vehicles", and how would you explain it without looking back?