?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.title=Modeling+Cultural+Dynamics&rft.creator=Gabora%2C+Dr.+Liane&rft.subject=Social+Psychology&rft.subject=Evolutionary+Psychology&rft.subject=Artificial+Intelligence&rft.description=EVOC+(for+EVOlution+of+Culture)+is+a+computer+model+of+culture+that+enables+us+to+investigate+how+various+factors+such+as+barriers+to+cultural+diffusion%2C+the+presence+and+choice+of+leaders%2C+or+changes+in+the+ratio+of+innovation+to+imitation+affect+the+diversity+and+effectiveness+of+ideas.+It+consists+of+neural+network+based+agents+that+invent+ideas+for+actions%2C+and+imitate+neighbors%E2%80%99+actions.+The+model+is+based+on+a+theory+of+culture+according+to+which+what+evolves+through+culture+is+not+memes+or+artifacts%2C+but+the+internal+models+of+the+world+that+give+rise+to+them%2C+and+they+evolve+not+through+a+Darwinian+process+of+competitive+exclusion+but+a+Lamarckian+process+involving+exchange+of+innovation+protocols.+EVOC+shows+an+increase+in+mean+fitness+of+actions+over+time%2C+and+an+increase+and+then+decrease+in+the+diversity+of+actions.+Diversity+of+actions+is+positively+correlated+with+population+size+and+density%2C+and+with+barriers+between+populations.+Slowly+eroding+borders+increase+fitness+without+sacrificing+diversity+by+fostering+specialization+followed+by+sharing+of+fit+actions.+Introducing+a+leader+that+broadcasts+its+actions+throughout+the+population+increases+the+fitness+of+actions+but+reduces+diversity+of+actions.+Increasing+the+number+of+leaders+reduces+this+effect.+Efforts+are+underway+to+simulate+the+conditions+under+which+an+agent+immigrating+from+one+culture+to+another+contributes+new+ideas+while+still+%E2%80%98fitting+in%E2%80%99.+&rft.publisher=AAAI+Press&rft.contributor=Davis%2C+Dr.++Alex&rft.contributor=Ludwig%2C+Dr.++Jeremy&rft.date=2008-11-06&rft.type=Conference+Paper&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fcogprints.org%2F6266%2F1%2FAAAI_FS01GaboraL_wCite.pdf&rft.format=other&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fcogprints.org%2F6266%2F2%2FAAAI_FS01GaboraL_wCite.pdf&rft.identifier=++Gabora%2C+Dr.+Liane++(2008)+Modeling+Cultural+Dynamics.++%5BConference+Paper%5D+++++&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fcogprints.org%2F6266%2F