Quantum co-evolution unit (QCU)

The "quantum co-evolution unit" (QCU) is a unit of measure for coevolution. It was first proposed by Kawika B. Winter and Will McClatchey in 2009 to measure the coevolutionary relationship between people and plants in their examination of the relationship between Native Hawaiian culture and ʻawa (kava, Piper methysticum).^[1] However, methodologies employing the use of QCUs have broad applications in quantifying other forms of coevolution, including but not limited to biocultural evolution.

Describing QCUs

Descriptions of individual QCUs (e.g., taro cultivation) is called a QCU profile. In the context of social-ecological systems it can be referred to as a biocultural profile. A scalable grouping of related QCUs is called a QCU population. In the context of social-ecological systems it can be referred to as a biocultural population.

Scalable measures of coevolution

Various forms of coevolution, including biocultural evolution, can occur at and be measured on various scales. On the both biological subunit side and the cultural subunit side, scales can include individual, community, population, etc.^[2]

Measuring biocultural diversity and biocultural evolution

QCUs have been used to quantify the biocultural value of a landscape at a given point in time. In that regard, they can be used to identify critical cultural habitat for Indigenous peoples.^[3] Changes in biocultural diversity through time can be described as biocultural evolution. The QCU can be used to measure biocultural diversity at a given scale at a given point in time. If the same methodology were to be followed at a different point in time, quantifiable changes in biocultural diversity within a biocultural population would constitute biocultural evolution.^[4] Examples of this include:

Particular QCUs have increased in frequency because of selection,
Particular QCUs have decreased in frequency because of selection, and/or
One or more QCU(s) have been added or lost through events homologous to evolution (mutation, extinction, others).
One or more QCU subunit(s) has changed (i.e., replacement of a lost or abandoned plant or tradition subunit) resulting in the creation of a new QCU.^[5]

Other research has further explored the mechanisms at the foundation of biocultural evolution.^[6]

Measuring resilience in social-ecological systems

Biocultural diversity has been linked to resilience in social-ecological systems, and QCUs can be used as a unit of measure in this context as well.^[7]^[8].

References

^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; Ticktin, Tamara; Quazi, Shimona (2020). "Biocultural restoration in Hawai'i also achieves core conservation goals". Ecology and Society. 25 (1): 26. doi:10.5751/ES-11388-250126.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2008). "Quantifying Evolution of Cultural Interactions with Plants: Implications for Managing Diversity for Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems". Functional Ecosystems and Communities. 2: 1-10.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2008). "Quantifying Evolution of Cultural Interactions with Plants: Implications for Managing Diversity for Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems". Functional Ecosystems and Communities. 2: 1-10.
^ Winter, Kawika B.; Lincoln, Noa K.; Berkes, Fikret (2018). "The Social-Ecological Keystone Concept: A Quantifiable Metaphor for Understanding the Structure, Function, and Resilience of a Biocultural System". Sustainability. 10 (9): 3294. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093294. {{cite journal}}: Check |doi= value (help); External link in |doi= (help)

[1] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.

[2] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.

[3] Winter, Kawika B.; Ticktin, Tamara; Quazi, Shimona (2020). "Biocultural restoration in Hawai'i also achieves core conservation goals". Ecology and Society. 25 (1): 26. doi:10.5751/ES-11388-250126.

[4] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.

[5] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2009). "The Quantum Co-evolution Unit: An Example of 'Awa (Piper methysticum G. Foster) in Hawaiʻi". Economic Botany. 63 (4): 353-362.

[6] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2008). "Quantifying Evolution of Cultural Interactions with Plants: Implications for Managing Diversity for Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems". Functional Ecosystems and Communities. 2: 1-10.

[7] Winter, Kawika B.; McClatchey, Will (2008). "Quantifying Evolution of Cultural Interactions with Plants: Implications for Managing Diversity for Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems". Functional Ecosystems and Communities. 2: 1-10.

[8] Winter, Kawika B.; Lincoln, Noa K.; Berkes, Fikret (2018). "The Social-Ecological Keystone Concept: A Quantifiable Metaphor for Understanding the Structure, Function, and Resilience of a Biocultural System". Sustainability. 10 (9): 3294. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093294. {{cite journal}}: Check |doi= value (help); External link in |doi= (help)

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