The Luria-Delbrück Distribution

Early statistical thinking about evolution

In the 1940s, biologists were puzzling over the origin of certain mutations that confer survival advantages to bacteria living under harsh environmental conditions. A well-known example is a mutation that confers on Escherichia coli cells resistance to phage—viruses that infect and kill wild-type bacterial cells. Some biologists believed that such mutations occur spontaneously, or randomly, in the sense that they occur regardless of their usefulness to the organism. Others held that such mutations occur in response to the environment, for example, to the assault of phage.

Some content is only viewable by ASA Members. Please login or become an ASA member to gain access.

Tagged as: , , ,