Re: Felsenstein and reproductive excess

"Perplexed in Peoria" <jimmenegay@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
news:d8lqoe$qje$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:

>
> "Inman Harvey" <inmanh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:d8kgss$blc$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> William Morse wrote:
>> >...
>> >
>> > Walter won't remove it because he is hopelessly confused himself.
>> > He can't even figure out the simple logic that organisms cannot
>> > produce more offspring than survive to reproduce.
>> > ^^^^
>>
>> I suspect that the word *more* here should be replaced by *less*.
>> Though guessing what others might intend by their words on sbe is a
>> chancy business!
>
> And "fewer" would be an even better replacement.
>
> Bill, you have been very unlucky in your successive attempts to
> formulate your "tautology". Perhaps your subconscious is trying
> to tell you something, but I have no idea what that might be.


Actually, I got it technically correct in a previous post on the thread
when I phrased it as "organisms always produce at least as many
offspring as survive". But the english literature side of my brain (or at
least the little that is left of it) doesn't like the ring of that
wording. In any case the point was well made by Darwin, a much better
writer and infinitely better scientist than I.

Yours,

Bill Morse

.

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