Abstract: "Standard evolutionary theories of aging and mortality, implicitly based on mean-field assumptions, hold that programmed mortality is untenable, as it opposes direct individual benefit. We show that in spatial models with local reproduction, programmed deaths instead robustly result in long-term benefit to a lineage, by reducing local environmental resource depletion via spatiotemporal patterns causing feedback over many generations. Results are robust to model variations, implying that direct selection for shorter lifespan may be quite widespread in nature."
