Looking for Peer Review on my theories

[erudyte]

Moderation note: the first 5 posts of this thread were moved from the indroduction thread 16822, because they’re about biology.

 

Moontanman:

 

Here is the theory, I hope I'm posting it in the right place...

 

This paper describes how living things emerge on the planet Earth as a result of the introduction over long periods of time, of bursts of (limited) energy in a diverse matter context.

 

A Hypothesis on the Emergence of Life

This paper suggests that in some contexts, energy releases tend to cause matter to combine into increasingly complex forms, specifically optimized to maximize energy capture.

 

Furthermore, that on the planet Earth, complex matter has, in fact, emerged as a direct result of this process, and furthermore, that all life on earth are complex combinations of matter, optimized through natural selection, to capture energy.

 

The Components

• A diverse Matter Context; Such as the pre-existing matter on Earth 5 billion years ago, and during the time it has been held captive while being bathed by the daily energy of things like geothermal vents, and the Sun.

• (2nd Law of thermodynamics); The tendency of energy to dissipate in the contexts in which it occurs.

• The tendency of matter to bond and combine into more complex forms, and disaggregate into simpler forms from the introduction of energy.

• Natural selection.

 

The Process Driving Increasingly Complex Forms of Matter

In the context of the components listed above, an autonomous self-optimizing process emerges. The process is driven by releases of energy causing stable endothermic and exothermic reactions and combinations of matter. Over time, some combinations are naturally selected to optimize energy capture.

 

Energy is Released into Diverse Matter

Energy is released into a diverse matter context. The energy release strikes different matter in different ways at different times, and in different contexts. In the early Earth these energy releases are from volcanoes, geothermal vents in ocean floors, the sun, and even tides.

 

Energy Causes Some Matter to Combine

Due to the chemical and physical properties of different elements, compounds, and mixtures, some matter is disaggregated into simpler forms by energy releases, and some matter is caused to combine with other matter. This results in an ongoing process of matter combinations and disaggregations that both release their existing energy, and capture energy.

 

Continued releases of energy repeat the process, and over time, combinations of matter that are vulnerable to disaggregation by this energy continue, on average, to be disaggregated by it. Other matter combinations will, on average, tend not to be disaggregated, but rather some will tend to result in further combinations with other matter, some will become more stable, and some will become more prone to capturing energy.

 

Natural Selection Favors Combination with Optimal Energy Capture

Over long periods of time, repeated or continued energy releases, result in some matter combinations that are increasingly stable, and increasingly able to harness or capture, energy releases. Over even longer periods of time, energy releases result in the emergence of matter aggregations that are systematically effective at capturing energy from these ongoing energy releases, by aggregating with other matter, and by combining matter within themselves in ways that capture that energy.

 

Why does this happen? Because natural selection tends to disaggregate matter that is less stable, and dissipate past matter less able to capture energy. In some cases, making the simpler or less stable chemistry available to be combined with more stable and more versatile configurations.

 

This context of continuous or repeated release and dissipation of energy, drives both combinations and disaggregations, energy releases, and energy captures. But natural selection causes some matter to combine into increasingly stable and increasingly complex combinations, and to especially favor those combinations that are increasingly optimized to capture energy in this repeated energy release context. Complex and stable energy capturing matter combinations necessarily ‘do well’ in this context, and increasingly proliferate and evolve.

 

It’s no coincidence that today, deposits of oil and coal are our most productive sources of energy. Not if you conclude that oil and coal are made up of billions of creatures whose construction was optimized specifically to capture energy.

 

Small Energy Releases Over Long Periods of Time

Small threshold energy dispersions, tend to emerge complex matter that is more finely calibrated . And in contexts where energy is available over longer durations, greater and more complex combinations can accumulate and evolve over time.

 

So matter aggregates, bonds, and combines in configurations that respond to the current waxing or waning of energy availability, and where such energy dispersions are also frequent over long periods of time, many more complex permutations and variations have time to evolve. The high temperatures and pressures of geothermal vents may be especially conducive to productive combinations of matter.

 

Emergence of Responsive and Predictive Matter Combinations

Limited energy dispersions with varying degrees of frequency, tend to result in more interesting complex matter combinations, because they also become optimized to capture ‘the next available energy’.

 

Geothermal vents seem to create a constant steady gradient of energy release, and some matter may be adapted to capturing energy across that gradient. In other words, in the context of geothermal energy gradients, matter should tend to combine in ways that cause it to be responsive to that specific energy context. If this is the case, it would not be a surprise to find diverse life concentrated along these geothermal vents in chemistry that is toxic to us, and in temperature and pressure conditions that we cannot imagine surviving in. It is not that living things have adapted to survive in extreme conditions, but rather that they emerged in it.

 

Energy release from the sun, on the other hand creates pulses of energy release, dispersed across the Earth in a 24 hour day/night cycle, and across cycles of high/low energy seasons. In contexts where matter is dependent on energy pulses or waves, complex matter tends to emerge that is optimally responsive to that energy context.

 

The unwinding and annealing of strands of DNA in response to temperature gradients, is one of a variety of complex matter adaptations that seem to be optimized to capture energy in one of these varying energy contexts.

 

Where complex matter adapts to feed on energy that is itself complex and responsive, increasingly predictive, and intelligent properties emerge. These properties emerge simply if, and only if, they provide marginal energy capture value.

 

The Tendency for Matter to Combine

So given the tendency of energy to dissipate in context, natural selection tends to cause matter to combine in ways that optimize energy capture, in that context. Or…

 

[Matter Complexity (Emergence of Complex Matter) = The tendency of Matter to combine to optimize it’s energy (capture) in the contexts in which it occurs]

 

This describes a counter entropic process tending to lead to the emergence of increasingly complex combinations of matter in configurations that are increasingly optimized for energy capture within the particular context in which they occur. This emerges from the energy bonds and chemistry of matter, low level pulses of energy into diverse matter substrate over long periods of time, and the tendency of energy to dissipate. And natural selection.

 

The Definition of Complexity (Life?)

So then ‘optimizing energy capture’ permeates all complex matter, and that leads to a definition;

Life is “Matter undergoing combination to optimize it’s energy capture in specific contexts”.

 

Complex Matter Increases The Impact of Natural Selection

As complex matter combinations become ubiquitous, they become part of the ‘energy environment’. Then for complexity that can access the energy in others, the context changes to reflect the more or less continuous availability of energy in the form of other complex combinations of matter. Once that happens, particular complex combinations become increasingly optimized for capturing that energy source. Then the context changes as those aggregations become hunted for energy, and predator/prey co-evolution throws natural selection into overdrive.

 

All Complexity Arises as Process Improvements for Energy Capture

If this is correct, then the ‘replication’ function of all living things emerges as an improved combination process. In other words, if a combination is effective for energy capture, duplicating it for twice the combination, is clearly even better. So DNA emerges as a molecule for replicating and diversifying combinations of matter that optimize the capture energy in different contexts. DNA probably emerges from a less stable, or less optimal replication method, and was naturally selected for, like all other improvements.

 

All New Complexity Must have Marginal Value for Energy Capture

Similarly, chromosomes, RNA, mitosis, meiosis, sexual reproduction, recombination, intelligence, behavior self-awareness, aggression, altruism, and even speciation itself, all emerge as specific matter combinations or process improvements, to optimize energy capture.

 

So aggregations of matter will tend to have brains, or not, based on their marginal value for energy capture, in that context.

 

A Broader View of Natural Selection

In some sense, amino acids in primordial chemistry or archaea in geothermal vents emerge as combinations of matter optimized for different but also quite specific time/space contexts.

 

In other words, Natural Selection that Darwin describes in ‘Origin of Species’ isn’t just a process driving the evolution of species by acting on individual organisms, but rather it is a more general process driving complexity generally. Natural selection has been acting on combinations of matter ever since the Earth was captured by the gravity of the sun, refining combinations of matter and optimizing their tendency to capture energy.

 

Gotta go. I’m going to go combine with a ham sandwich.

[Essay]

This describes a counter entropic process tending to lead to the emergence of increasingly complex combinations of matter in configurations that are increasingly optimized for energy capture within the particular context in which they occur. This emerges from the energy bonds and chemistry of matter, low level pulses of energy into diverse matter substrate over long periods of time, and the tendency of energy to dissipate. And natural selection.

 

The Definition of Complexity (Life?)

So then ‘optimizing energy capture’ permeates all complex matter, and that leads to a definition;

Life is “Matter undergoing combination to optimize it’s energy capture in specific contexts”.

This last line reminds me of my favorite quote:

"Life is just Nature's Way of turning Light into Heat." -R. Dawson

...or my version:

Life is just God's Way of maximizing Entropy. :eek_big:

...or Nature's Way of maximizing Entropy... whichever; it's the Life = "maximized entropy" part that is key.

 

So yes, it sounds as if you have an intuitive grasp of how life can "spontaneously" arise.

 

You should google "non-equilibrium thermodynamics"

...also currently featured in this months Scientific American.

 

As a suggestion, I think the importance of zeolites and all surface and interface chemistry (and/or non-eq. thermodynamics/physics) would add a lot of depth to (or potential avenues to develop) your concept here. You might even be able to work up some testable hypotheses.

 

Questions? Comments? Ponderings?

 

~ :eek_big:

 

p.s. ...also google: "origin of life" zeolites

...with the quotes, as written, right?

[erudyte]

Yes, but the Question is...

 

Is natural selection acting in this way sufficient to predict the emergence of complex matter (life)?

[erudyte]

And am I posting stuff in the right place?

[Nitack]

This needs to be moved to biology...

 

Hopefully a :shrug: will catch the attention of a mod.

[erudyte]

Nitack:

 

It's about the dynamics of energy, and the dynamics of endothermic and exothermic chemical bonding. In that sense, it's not biology. Just Physics and chemistry.

 

Mark

[Essay]

Yes, but the Question is...

 

Is natural selection acting in this way sufficient to predict the emergence of complex matter (life)?

No, but it's sufficient to explain the emergence....

 

~ :rose:

 

p.s. Hey, what'dya think of my quotes? Do you see the similarity with yours?

They strike me as sublimely funny, but I don't know if others see that also.

~ ;)