Adaptive complexity can come from cumulative culture, not genes or intention

Evidence

Recognizing the power of cultural evolution to produce such adaptive complexity has serious implications for studying humans. It means that when we observe something functionally well suited to address an adaptive challenge outside of conscious awareness, whether it be a snow house or complex cognitive ability (like subtracting 16 from 17), we can’t assume that the complexity comes from either natural selection acting on genes or intentional construction. It might be a product of cumulative cultural evolution. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 384

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Culture supplied the water capacity that genes alone could not, enabling endurance running adaptations — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 256; Forager water-procurement know-how is nonobvious cultural knowledge that genes could not supply — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 255; Cumulative cultural evolution can create complex, well-designed adaptations without any designer — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 379 (+10 more)

Broader Connections

• Culture is a genetically evolved consequence of social learning adaptations. #complicates (0.88) — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 139
• Observational learning enables cumulative cultural evolution of behaviors no individual could invent alone #exemplifies (0.86) — Joe Henrich and Robert Boyd, The Evolution of Conformist…, 19
• Cumulative cultural evolution drives selection for brains specialized to acquire cultural information. #complicates (0.85) — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 218
• Once cultural knowledge accumulates, individuals cannot invent better traits than they can copy #corroborates (0.83) — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 205
• Human cumulative culture emerges from evolved domain-specific cognitive adaptations for social learning #complicates (0.82) — Joe Henrich and Robert Boyd, The Evolution of Conformist…, 16
• Human evolution selected for learnability and behavioral malleability, not fixedness #complicates (0.80)
• Deliberate design generates new cultural variation faster and more constructively than random mutation #complicates (0.78) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 499
• Natural selection built cultural learning that can overwrite innate preferences #complicates (0.77) — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success, 365
• Cultural learning skills drove rapid human adaptation across all habitats #complicates (0.75) — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 125
• Cultural variation between groups requires an adaptive explanation consistent with evolved psychology. #complicates (0.72) — Joe Henrich and Robert Boyd, The Evolution of Conformist…, 8