Seminar "From Extinction to Expansion: The Role of Vacancies in the Evolution of Cooperation" by Prof. Hye Jin Park

Date

Location

L4E01 and Zoom

Description

Speaker: Prof. Hye Jin Park

Title: From Extinction to Expansion: The Role of Vacancies in the Evolution of Cooperation

Affiliation: Department of Physics, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea

Hosted by Dieckmann Unit

Venue: L4E01, Lab 4

*Zoom is available: https://oist.zoom.us/j/99346908323?pwd=ZFQDltkuagOXzXVjRpAlhdsFDkNWVh.1

Abstract:

In a growing habitat where empty spaces naturally emerge, the survival of a population depends on both local interactions and broader environmental conditions. We investigate how cooperation and selfish behavior evolve in such settings by modeling population growth on a one-dimensional lattice, where individuals engage in a prisoner’s dilemma game with their neighbors. As environmental conditions become harsher, the population reaches a tipping point between survival and extinction, with this threshold shifting depending on whether cooperative or selfish individuals are present. We identify a “cooperative window”, a range of conditions where only cooperative individuals can survive. Within this window, even if mutations introduce selfish individuals into a cooperative community, they may spread temporarily, but vacancies act as natural barriers that restrict their expansion, ultimately leading to their decline. Our findings highlight the essential role of vacancies in promoting cooperation by structuring interactions in a way that limits selfishness, providing insights into how cooperative behavior can persist in dynamic environments.

Biosketch:

2011.09–2016.08: Ph. D. in physics, Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea

2016.09–2020.03: PostDoc, Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Germany 

2020.04–2022.02: Junior Research Group Leader, Asia Pacific Center for Theoretical Physics, South Korea 

2020.09–2022.02: Adjunct Professor, POSTECH, South Korea  

2022.03–present: Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, Inha University, South Korea

All-OIST Category: 

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