1/f spectrum in the information transfer model for mass extinction

TL;DR

This paper investigates an information transfer model for biological evolution, demonstrating that mutation rate time series exhibit a 1/f spectrum, which explains power-law behaviors observed in fossil data, and explores effects of network shortcuts.

Contribution

It introduces a model showing 1/f spectral behavior in evolution dynamics and analyzes how network topology influences evolutionary activity.

Findings

Mutation rate time series display 1/f spectrum.

Shortcuts in the network can increase or decrease evolution activity.

Power-law behavior in fossil data is explained by the model.

Abstract

We study the information transfer model for biological evolution with several kinds of fitness function. The system is stimulated to volve into a stationary state, depending on the fitness function and on the dimension of the lattice formed by the species. In particular the system yields time series of the mutation rate which exhibits the $1/f$ spectrum, thus explains the power-law behavior in fossil data. Effects of shortcuts introduced on the lattice are also examined and the evolution activity is usually found to increase in a well-growing system although the reduction of the overall activity may also be observed in the presence of shortcuts, depending on the initial configuration.