The same old process of automatic selection between rival molecules by reason of their longevity, fecundity, and copying-fidelity, still go on as blindly and as inevitably as they did in the far-off days.

fecundity (n) 1: the intellectual fruitfulness of a creative imagination [syn: fruitfulness] 2: the state of being fertile; capable of producing offspring [syn: fertility] 3: the quality of something that causes or assists healthy growth [syn: fruitfulness] – source: The Selfish Gene, p. 24