onsdag 28 september 2011

On the problem with the concepts monophyletic group and clade

The problem with the concept monophyletic group is that it is ambiguous between specifics (i.e., in time) and generics (i.e., over time) - whereof the concept specific monophyletic group is synonymous with what cladists call paraphyletic group, and generic monophyletic group is synonymous with holophyletic group. This conceptual ambiguity means that specific and generic monophyletic groups can't be practically distinguished unambiguously, because an ambiguity can't be distinguished unambiguously.

The problem with the concept clade is that it confuses the concept monophyletic group with holophyletic group, and thus also generic with specific. It means that clades can't be practically distinguished without contradiction, because generic is orthogonal (i.e., diametrically opposed) to specific.

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