Published Feb 20, 2023 by Science X Professor Robinson worked with colleagues Dr. António Rodrigues from Yale University and Dr. Jessica Barker from Aarhus University and the University of Alaska Anchorage to try and explain how this level of cooperation could come about and what benefits it might offer to those involved.
They developed the following hypothesis. Firstly, plentiful food means that the group gets bigger but also reduces conflict between its members. When offspring move away to establish satellite groups they don't move far, in order to remain close to food sources. Kinship and plentiful resources results in little conflict between these different, but related, groups, and makes it in their interest to prevent new groups getting settled nearby. Finally sharing of resources ensures that all the cooperating groups thrive.
To test this hypothesis, Dr. Rodrigues created a model that can mathematically quantify the evolutionary consequences of different levels of cooperation. The model allows the researchers to change a number of variables—such as how far offspring move from the parent group—to see how this affects the outcome.
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