In this video I showcase a program that I have been working on for simulating evolution by natural selection. I dive into various mechanisms of the simulation and go over some interesting real-life biology in the process. The key aim of this project is to evolve multicellular organisms, starting from single-celled protozoa-like creatures that must collect mass and energy from their surroundings in order to survive, grow and reproduce.
Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
00:56 - Life of a protozoan
02:46 - The start of the simulation
05:57 - How the cells work
06:53 - Introducing multicellular colonies
08:33 - Understanding evolution
11:38 - Looking at data from the simulation
13:27 - Evolving epigenetics introduction
14:14 - Waddington's Landscape and cell specialisation
15:22 - The Central Dogma of Molecular Biology
16:05 - Gene Regulatory Networks
16:54 - Outro
17:30 - Watching the simulation
Find the project on GitHub:
https://github.com/DylanCope/Evolving-Protozoa
Credits:
Tectonic plates animation: Scotese, C.R., 2016. Plate Tectonics, Paleogeography, and Ice Ages, (Modern World - 540Ma)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_iEWvtKcuQ
Gene expression and cell specialisation diagram: Prof. Dave Explains, 2017. The origin of multicellular life
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAWrxKHY_7I
Stock footage of organisms under a microscope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa3JKuR9fgQ
Music by Vincent Rubinetti
Download the music on Bandcamp:
https://vincerubinetti.bandcamp.com/album/the-music-of-3blue1brown
Stream the music on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/1dVyjwS8FBqXhRunaG5W5u
This video was made possible thanks to the fantastic mathematical animation software Manim Community, originally developed by @3blue1brown
https://www.manim.community/
Socials:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DylanRobertCope