Evolution and Selection of Quantitative Traits

First and foremost I must say that I, like almost all of my colleagues, are big fans of Volume 1. However, Volume 2 is almost twice the size in every dimension and weighs in ~3.5Kg with roughly the same font size. ~1500 pages of only the gorey details.Formatted in much the same way as Volume 1, Volume 2 is not an "easy read" but it, at least what has been read, is clearly written. The fact of the matter is if these books were easier to read they would contain less information and would not be regarded as THE definitive resources for the study of quantitative traits.I admit that I have not read the whole book, but I also haven't read the entire dictionary, or an entire encyclopedia... who would! This book is best served sitting gloriously on a lectern so that the reader may easily, and without the risk of back injury, turn to the section of interest and learn, nearly, all there is to know of the subject.A book of this magnitude could only be conceived and completed by absolute madmen.My only upset with the book so far, is that it alludes to a tome yet unwritten regarding multivariate problems in quant gen... Volume 3. Nestled nicely between equation 13.23a and 13.23b, as well other places throughout, you will find this awe inspiring reference.tldr; WOW!

I study fundamental and diverse mechanisms and processes of evolution from the molecular to the ecosystems/biosphere(macroecology) levels(evolutionary innovation, evolvabilty, robustness, niche construction so on), evolutionary quantitative genetics is a first step in understanding causative forces behind evolutionary transformations! The book covers aspects of non-adaptive evolutionary processes(like drift, Organic Nonoptimal Constrained Evolution or O.N.C.E. and sexual selection/conflict, behavior etc), non-genetic variational(environmental effects on trait development and function) factors like epigenetics and phenotypic plasticity (which can include extended epigenetic inheritance), and the whole of evolutionary population genetics! A book like this is exactly what I needed to do more mathematical and statistical analysis on the evolutionary processes I study! I'm very fascinated with speciation for example, especially ecological speciation(most notably sensory-drive, pollinator-drive and behavioral/sexual isolating mechanisms)! Of course this has many of the tools I need to study these complex process systems!Adaptive dynamics can be very complex in evolving populations and ecosystems, in which this volume can be a start to the quantitative analysis of creative co-eco-evolutionary processes and patterns! Advance praise for 'evolution and selection of quantitative traits' by two giants in the field of Evolutionary quantitative genetics! Next is evolutionary ecological quantitative genomics, epigenetics, epigenomics as well hologenomics(symbiogenomics, microbiomes and Horizontal gene transfer etc)! Perhaps the next volume considers more of the complexities of evolutionary dynamics(some chapters mention some of these and other aspects) like multi-level/multifarious selection(social evolution), non-genetic variational factors like plasticity(environmental effects and responses), mutation hotspots(natural genetic engineering), phenotypic integration, genotype space, morphometrics, adaptive diversification/dynamics, gene regulatory networks, epistasis, phylogenomics, ecophylogenetics, (like high dimensional adaptive fitness landscapes especially relating to developmental evolution) so on. From the hint to the third volume, my guess is that some of these issues and others will be considered! These would be complexities in multivariate aspects of quantitative genetics; such would be for eco-evolutionary dynamics and the geographic mosaic of coevolution!Also I'm interested in astrobiology, theoretical ecology, a field I'm pioneering called 'quantum infothermodynamic evolutionary systems biology'(quantum syntropic and syn-entropic holo-fractal evolutionary biological information theory QEBIT) which includes biosemiotics, infobiotics, code biology, evolutionary developmental biology and eco-evo-devo so on! My own work stands on the shoulders of these two giants of evolutionary biology!Some of my models of evolution driven by organismal agency and other random/stochastic & non-random processes like especially drift(neutral mutations, cryptic genetic and epigenetic variation, epigenetic evolutionary capacitors) selection(divergent natural and sexual selection) are described as differential selective intra-to-inter-modular and inter-to-intra-modular constructive neutral molecular evolution and modular plasticity and robustness including genetic assimilation; of which I've been working on population genetics models for(as well models of natural quantum-fractal genetic and epigenetic engineering)! This will be a great edition to add to my library(ebook) and a basic encyclopedic reference of evolutionary quantitative and population genetics for my own research(also I recommend you get the book 'Encyclopedia of evolutionary biology' published by Academic Press, circa 2016)! Thanks for your work in the field of evolutionary biology! I'm absolutely passionate about evolutionary dynamics!.

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