# Artificial Selection > **Machine-Evolution Nexus:** [[articles/Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution|Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution]] places this node within the history and governance of substrate-independent evolution. **Domain:** Evolution / Breeding / Governance **Doc Type:** Canonical Wiki Node **Maturity:** Developed ## Definition Artificial selection is differential reproduction directed by human choices about which variants breed or persist. ## Nexus Context Genetic algorithms and current evolvable-AI techniques usually operate in this breeder regime because designers choose encodings, objectives and retention rules. ## Evidence Boundary Human direction does not eliminate evolution, but it changes control, fitness and accountability. Selection criteria can still produce unexpected or harmful solutions. ## Relationships [[wiki/Breeder Scenario|Breeder Scenario]], [[wiki/Genetic Algorithm|Genetic Algorithm]], [[wiki/Natural Selection|Natural Selection]], [[wiki/Objective Function|Objective Function]] - **Edge source route:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] connects this topic to exact Annual Question passages promoted into the Simple Reminders archive. ## Simple Reminders, Quotations, and Thoughts > "Taking on the mantle of creation is an immense act of hubris. Can we do better than four billion years of evolution did with us?" > **— Kate Jeffery**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Evolution/Can We Improve on Four Billion Years of Evolution by Kate Jeffery|Can We Improve on Four Billion Years of Evolution by Kate Jeffery]] > "As organisms got more complex, cells networked to create towering organic structures, the biological equivalents of the Empire State Building or the Burj Khalifa." > **— David Christian**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Evolution/Complex Organisms Are Networks of Cells by David Christian|Complex Organisms Are Networks of Cells by David Christian]] > "Reproduction, which is a subset of the resource needs, becomes a non-issue for an immortal machine that can perform self-repair." > **— Kevin P. Hand**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Evolution/Immortal Machines May Not Need Reproduction by Kevin P. Hand|Immortal Machines May Not Need Reproduction by Kevin P. Hand]] > "Intelligent machines don't need to be programmed anymore, they can learn and evolve by themselves, at a speed much faster than human intelligence progresses." > **— Dirk Helbing**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Evolution/Machines Can Learn and Evolve Faster Than Humans by Dirk Helbing|Machines Can Learn and Evolve Faster Than Humans by Dirk Helbing]] > "Human interaction is built upon a kind of psychology that only our species has mastered." > **— Nick Enfield**, *2015, Edge annual question “What Do You Think About Machines That Think?”* [[reminders/Evolution/Social Thinking May Be Uniquely Human by Nick Enfield|Social Thinking May Be Uniquely Human by Nick Enfield]] > “Any gene (or set of genes) can be forced to “drive” through an entire wild population. It doesn’t matter if the trait the genes control is deleterious to the organism. With one genetic tweak to its germline, a species can even be compelled to go extinct.” > **— Stewart Brand**, *2016, Edge Annual Question: “”* [[reminders/Selection/One Germline Tweak Can Compel a Species to Go Extinct by Stewart Brand|One Germline Tweak Can Compel a Species to Go Extinct by Stewart Brand]] > “With tougher selection, say by kidnapping a year’s worth of National Merit Finalists, you could create a new ethny with far higher average intelligence than any existing. Eugenics is not only possible, it’s trivial.” > **— Gregory Cochran**, *2017, Edge Annual Question: “WHAT SCIENTIFIC TERM OR CONCEPT OUGHT TO BE MORE WIDELY KNOWN?”* [[reminders/Selection/Eugenics Is Not Only Possible It Is Trivial by Gregory Cochran|Eugenics Is Not Only Possible It Is Trivial by Gregory Cochran]] > “First, smart kids and malicious grown-ups will find ways to convert biotech tools to the manufacture of lethal microbes. Second, ambitious parents will find ways to apply biotech tools to the genetic modification of their own babies.” > **— Freeman Dyson**, *2006, Edge Annual Question: “WHAT IS YOUR DANGEROUS IDEA?”* [[reminders/Selection/Ambitious Parents Will Modify Their Own Babies by Freeman Dyson|Ambitious Parents Will Modify Their Own Babies by Freeman Dyson]] > “As I told my class, we've been practicing genetic engineering on animals for the last 10,000 years. Genetic engineering is the foundation of civilization.” > **— Lee Silver**, *PBS Frontline interview* [[reminders/Selection/Animal Breeding Is an Old Form of Genetic Engineering by Lee Silver|Animal Breeding Is an Old Form of Genetic Engineering by Lee Silver]] > “Thus, genetic selection will inevitably move towards genetic enhancement.” > **— Peter Singer**, *The Guardian essay, September 2006* [[reminders/Selection/Genetic Selection May Lead to Enhancement by Peter Singer|Genetic Selection May Lead to Enhancement by Peter Singer]] > “We already engage in designer-baby technology now. That is what amniocentesis, preimplantation genetic testing of embryos, and chorionic villus sampling are all about—avoiding unwanted genes either by not implanting certain embryos or aborting fetuses.” > **— Arthur Caplan**, *Free Inquiry interview, 2003* [[reminders/Selection/Designer-Baby Technology Already Includes Embryo Selection by Arthur Caplan|Designer-Baby Technology Already Includes Embryo Selection by Arthur Caplan]] > “This announcement also marks the first time a company has openly partnered with a couple to help them optimize their embryos based on intelligence.” > **— Kian Sadeghi**, *Nucleus Embryo launch post, 2025* [[reminders/Selection/A Company Claims to Help Select Embryos for Intelligence by Kian Sadeghi|A Company Claims to Help Select Embryos for Intelligence by Kian Sadeghi]] ## Sources / Provenance - Darwin’s comparison of artificial and natural selection; evolutionary-computation literature.