Preface Preface to First Edition 1. Prelude Lawlike Behavior in Evolution Evolution and Developmental Biology Neo-Darwinism and the Origin of Higher Taxa: Of Moths and Mammals A Proposed Analogy Form and Function Summary 2. The Core Hypothesis Introduction to the Thesis Energy and Information Information Entropy and Information Some Biological Interpretations Thermodynamics Information Theory Hierarchical Information Theory Informational Capacity Order and Disorder Closed Systems Noise Self-Organizing Systems Biological Phenomenology The Nature of the Initial Conditions Information Cohesion Physiological Phenomenology Research Programs Summary 3. Ontogeny, Morphology, and Evolution Ontogenesis as a Nonequilibrium Phenomenon The Genome as an Organized Unit Terminal Changes Nonterminal Changes Entropic Behavior of Ontogenesis Compensatory Changes Compensatory Changes and the Course of Evolution Historical Analysis and Ontogeny Summary 4. Populations and Species Evolution in Populations Information Overall Estimates of Information Entropy Information Partitioning and Multiple Populations Patterns of Change in Information Proximal Mechnisms of Changes in Information Cohesion Factors Affecting Cohesion Cohesion within a Population Cohesion among Populations Cohesion and Entropy Summary Remarks Species and Speciation Modes of Speciation Speciation and Entropy Changes Comment on Punctuated Equilibrium Species, Phylogenetic Tree Topologies, and Entropy Summary 5. Mapping Historical Change Linguistic and Structuralist Approaches to Systematics Syntax Systematic Technique Derived from Entropy Considerations Phylogenetic Systematics The Wagner Algorithm Semantics Semantic Components Historical Constraints and Outgroups Parsimony and Minimum Entropy Increases Information Considerations Cohesion Considerations Testing for Departures from Minimum Entropy Configurations "Linguistic Affinities" of Systematic Techniques Summary 6. Macroecology Macroscopic Properties of Ecological Associations Historical Ecology Life History Cycles and Ecology Coevolution and Colonization Vicariance Biogeography Separating Historical and Proximal Ecological Associations--Two Examples Historical Ecology and Competition Summary 7. Reprise and Prelude References Index.