> The simplest explanation for caste determination is that workers are simply starved queens.
The simplest explanation isn't always the best nor the correct one. One strives to make a theory as simple as possible but not simpler. Ryszard Maleszka (2018) states:
> I argue that the sheer complexity of creating alternate phenotypes from one genotype cannot be reduced to a single dietary component. An acceptable model of environmentally driven caste differentiation should include the facets of dynamic thinking, such as the concepts of attractor states and genetic hierarchical networks.
> More research is badly needed to create a testable model of caste determination in honey bees. To accelerate progress, what is now required is a convergence of advanced molecular techniques with facets of dynamic thinking, attractor states and the concept of an emergent self-organising system.
PLB
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