Equation 11 · Part 1 · Why We Punish Strangers: The Evolution of Human Cooperation
Symbol y
What this part means
y is a part of this expression. Its role is fixed by the surrounding article and by the operations shown in the formula.
Its job in the formula
y is a part of this expression. Its role is fixed by the surrounding article and by the operations shown in the formula.
Full expression→Symbol y→Article meaning
The passage around this formula
…the punisher’s fitness disadvantage relative to a non-punishing cooperator shrinks toward zero even while the plain cooperator’s disadvantage relative to a defector does not. Writing x for the frequency of cooperators, y for the frequency of punishers, and k for the cost of punishing a single defector, the punisher’s expected fitness penalty is approximately
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Sources cited in the surrounding passage
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