A random process of DNA exchange that occurs during sexually reproduction (meiosis), and which gives rise to chromosomes containing genes not found in the cells of either parent. This genetic rearrangement can be a considerable source of variation for natural selection to acts upon. Consider, for example, that there are 2²³ possible new combinations of …
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Genetic algorithms
Robust stochastic search techniques that do not require knowledge of the objective function to be optimized and which can search through large spaces quickly. They are derived from processes in evolutionary and molecular biology such as natural selection. Their operators (viz., crossover, mutation and reproduction) are isomorphic with the synonymous biological processes. Instead of DNA …
Generative grammar approach
A theoretical linguistic framework based on ideas promoted by Noam Chomsky in the 1950s. A generative grammar attempts to describe a native speaker’s tacit grammatical knowledge by a system of rules or constraints that specify all of the well-formed, or grammatical, sentences of the language while excluding all ungrammatical, or impossible, sentences. Grammatical structure is …
Generalized linear model (GLM)
Group of statistical models that models some function of the expected value of the dependent variable as a linear combination of the independent variables. In its simplest form, a linear model specifies the linear relationship between a dependent variable Y, and a set of predictor variables, the X’s, giving: where b0 is the regression coefficient …
Generalized sequential querier (GSEQ)
Originally devised by Roger Bakeman and Vicenc Quera (1995), it is a general-purpose computer program for analysing sequential observational data that has been expressed using SDIS conventions. See Coding schemes, Sequential data interchange standard (SDIS), The Observer
Generalization
The extent to which the observations or findings from a given study may also be true at other times or in other populations defined by age, residence, or any other distinctive set of characteristics. Then there is an associated logical fallacy: the fallacy of hasty generalization. This occurs when a conclusion about a population is …
General system theory (GST)
A courageous attempt by Ludwig von Bertalanffy (1901-1972) to provide a systems framework for promoting interdisciplinary research. Drawing largely on irreversible thermodynamics and exploring its application to living systems, he devised not so much a theory, as a general model of organization applicable to open systems at different levels of analysis. In this respect, he …
General theory of biological classification
The system of biological classification used today derives from the hierarchical scheme devised by Carolus Linnaeus or Carl von Linné (1707-1778). In the 10th edition of his Systema naturae (1758), he listed every type of animal known to him, organizing them into groups based on overall similarity. The Linnaean system consists of seven major categories …
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General movements
Movements of the fetus, first evident at 8.5-9.5 weeks of gestation (see figure below), and young infant in which all parts of the body participate. They disappear from the behavioral repertoire some 4 months after birth in healthy fullterm infants to be replaced by more discrete movements giving the appearance of being under voluntary control. …
General nominals
Words that refer to classes of objects. They include word classes not only of objects, but also of substances, animals, people, letters, numbers, pronouns and abstractions. See Count (or countable) nouns, Nominal group, Specific nominals