Competition and Cooperation

Abstract

"Population biology, whether in the guise of population genetics or in the guise of a more abstract evolutionary theory, provides a wonderful source of ideas for anyone studying the logical problem of language acquisition (see Yang, 2002, for discussion). These models have, at least, been the source of some thought provoking metaphors in the study of learnability as well as the study of language change. Indeed, there is some hope that the mathematics of population biology could form the basis of a learnability proof for parameterized models of grammar. In this paper, I would like to compare what I'll call “competition models” – models based on evolutionary theory – with “cooperation models”. These latter models are also grounded in mathematical biology, but use cooperative behaviors as seen among social insects as their source of inspiration"