  "Epigenetic Tracking" is an evo-devo method to generate arbitrary 2d or 3d
shapes; as such, it belongs to the field of "artificial embryology". In silico
experiments have proved the effectiveness of the method in devo-evolving shapes
of any kind and complexity (in terms of number of cells, number of colours,
etc.), establishing its potential to generate the complexity typical of
biological systems. Furthermore, it has also been shown how the underlying
model of development is able to produce the artificial version of key
biological phenomena such as embryogenesis, the presence of junk DNA, the
phenomenon of ageing and the process of carcinogenesis. In this paper the
evo-devo core of the method is explored and the result is a novel hypothesis on
the biological role of genomic transposable elements, according to which
transposition in somatic cells during development drives cellular
differentiation and transposition in germ cells is an indispensable tool to
boost evolution. Thus transposable elements, far from being "junk", have one of
the most important roles in multicellular biology.
