Design Signature

From the SL4 Lexicon:

Design Signature:

Characteristic patterns left on an object or mind by its designer. These patterns naturally will reflect the strategy of the designer initially, but may transform over time, through external influences or self-direction. One obvious example would be the use of contraceptives by human beings. (Evolution, if it could possess feelings, would despise contraceptives.) Design Signatures may be very specific, and studying the characteristic Design Signature of a process can give us vast insights into the form and function of the designed objects. For example, all biological studies are informed by what we know about the Design Signature of evolution. One aspect of the Design Signature of evolution on Earth seems to be that, when it creates minds at all, these minds must possess self-interested tendencies (otherwise they wouldn't be adaptive). See also Evolutionary Biology, Evolutionary Psychology.