[Linkpost] “Genes did misalignment first: comparing gradient hacking and meiotic drive” by Holly Elmore ⏸️ 🔸

This is a link post.

My PhD is in evolutionary biology, and I spent much of my time learning and thinking about genetic governance mechanisms like meiosis. I find myself wanting a link to share on these concepts, so I'm publishing some old writing I did in 2022 that makes the comparison.

Gradient descent and natural selection are analogous

Gradient descent can be compared to natural selection. Both are optimization algorithms. But while gradient descent is only decades old as part of the field of machine learning (ML), natural selection is the reason complex living beings like human readers exist. Are there any lessons we can learn about alignment by looking at the products of natural selection?

Oly Sourbut has written up a set of conditions under which natural selection and gradient descent are equivalent, i.e., where the same inputs will lead to the same outputs under both algorithms [...]

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Outline:

(00:32) Gradient descent and natural selection are analogous

(01:38) Gradient descent can be hacked

(03:09) There is something like gradient hacking in biology: meiotic drive

(05:34) How meiotic drive works

(08:30) Recombination is the major genetic alignment technology

(09:46) Examples of meiotic drive

(17:46) Losing the ability to do meiosis is a death sentence for a species

(19:45) Acknowledgments

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First published:
April 18th, 2025

Source:
https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/qX6swbcvrtHct8G8g/genes-did-misalignment-first-comparing-gradient-hacking-and

Linkpost URL:
https://hollyelmore.substack.com/p/genes-did-misalignment-first-comparing

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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.