In humans knowledge represents the most significant aspect of life. In other higher organisms and in lower ones it plays important role also. .
Plants.
Here we haven’t neural system. But plants have chemicals, hormones and pollen as ways of internal and external communication system.
One cell organisms.
Feeding substance or the lack of it, or irritants met on environment stand for sources of information. This type of information causes production of chemicals that lead to simple reaction of parts of the cell (genome, natural genetic engineering systems) or the whole of it. So we have here in away a mode of learning arc, where neural system is substituted by chemicals or the above engineering systems.
Matter.
If we make a bold jump of thought, we can say the four interactive forces, by which the simplest particles in the universe interact with one another, eg gravity, electromagnetism, weak and strong nuclear forces are all, in other words, expression of communication between them.
So communication, eg information transfer is taking place even between non living matter staff and is essential to universe development. Of course this must happen on a more wide and complicated scale on living organisms and especially as regards to life development and evolution. It seems there is in nature, and it is logical to be, a continuum relating communication from simple matter to higher living beings.
Each animal has billions of neural cells
Is it logical to exclude this so rich and widespread function from the process of evolution ? This does not seem to be in accord to nature’s economy law.
I believe this was the result of Darwinians dogmatic belief that knowledge has no any whatsoever serious effect on evolution process.
That is why i believe we need to aknowledge the the importance of information's (and neural system's) role in evolution.
Information: It is time its undeservedly neglectet powerful role to evolution to be restored.