Modeling Complexity Cycles in Savannah Sparrow Songs by Nadim Stambuli ’25

Modeling Complexity Cycles in Savannah Sparrow Songs by Nadim Stambuli ’25, Wednesday April,30, 1:00 – 1:50pm, North Science Building 113, Wachenheim, Mathematics Thesis Defense

In this presentation, we will explore how mathematical modeling may contribute to contemporary extensions of evolutionary theory. We will begin by introducing the theory of cultural evolution, which has its roots in Darwin’s theory of genetic evolution, but departs from it in significant ways. Then we will see why the songs of a specific population of Savannah Sparrows provide an important model system for understanding cultural evolution in a natural context. This will motivate several questions about the evolution of Savannah Sparrow songs, including: What mechanisms drive their evolution? Do these mechanisms play a role in other systems of intra-specific communication? And the focal question of my thesis: do Savannah Sparrow songs undergo complexity cycles? We will try to answer these questions by modeling the evolution of songs within a population of Sparrows for which we have ample data. Finally, we generalize our results to other systems of cultural evolution.