Philosophy Concordance - online philosophical quotations

But we can imagine also a modified picture: namely that what is inherited is not the pattern itself, but rather the tendency to make others display it – to support those of one's pals who display it and to ostracize those who do not. Before starting to wonder how realistic such a picture is, let us add one more modification.

This modification even have been effected by a single genetic change that became fixed in the population through drift or other random processes.

The idea seems to be that nothing less than a perfect system would be in the least bit usable, so if the current language faculty is perfect, one could not explain its evolution in terms of incremental modification of earlier designs.

But even if we allow for the possibility of selection before, during, and after a change of function, the suggestion that the system for linguistic recursion is a minor modification of a system for navigation is questionable.

Of course a common sense explanation of language acquisition along these lines would undoubtedly attempt to minimize the rationality of the child by emphasizing the sporadic, careless, undisciplined character -- in short the childishness of the process -- thought not to the extent of completely undercutting the applicability of the question, hypothesis, weighing evidence, acceptance, rejection, modification model.

On colonisation from the nearest source with subsequent modification.

Difficulties on the theory of descent with modification.

Professor Lloyd Morgan gives the following definition of "instinctive behaviour": "That which is, on its first occurrence, independent of prior experience; which tends to the well-being of the individual and the preservation of the race; which is similarly performed by all members of the same more or less restricted group of animals; and which may be subject to subsequent modification under the guidance of experience."

The popular conception of instinct errs by imagining it to be infallible and preternaturally wise, as well as incapable of modification. This is a complete delusion.

We may say that an animal "experiences" an occurrence when this occurrence modifies the animal's subsequent behaviour, i.e. when it is the mnemic portion of the cause of future occurrences in the animal's life. The burnt child that fears the fire has "experienced" the fire, whereas a stick that has been thrown on and taken off again has not "experienced" anything, since it offers no more resistance than before to being thrown on. The essence of "experience" is the modification of behaviour produced by what is experienced.