How do non-living things ‘evolve’? | Michael Wong | TEDxNewEngland

The Creative Cosmos: A Summary of the Pursuit of a Law of Evolution

Key Concepts:

• Second Law of Thermodynamics: The principle governing the increase of entropy (disorder) in the universe.
• Entropy: A measure of disorder or randomness in a system.
• Functional Information: A metric quantifying the fraction of configurations within a system that can achieve a specific function; a measure of complexity and order.
• Static Persistence: An entity’s ability to maintain its form without decay.
• Dynamic Persistence: The continuation of activity and exchange within a system, even as its components change.
• Novelty Generation: The capacity of a system to create new configurations and functions.
• Law of Increasing Functional Information: A proposed law suggesting that evolving systems increase in functional information over time, counterbalancing the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

I. The Paradox of Complexity

The presentation begins by posing a fundamental question: how can complexity arise in a universe governed by the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which dictates an inevitable increase in entropy (disorder)? While Carl Sagan noted the universe’s primordial ingredients existed at its inception, simply having those ingredients doesn’t explain the emergence of complex structures like apple pies, galaxies, or life itself. The speaker highlights the ubiquity of novelty and richness in the cosmos, challenging the notion that entropy alone can account for the observed order. The core issue is that while the Second Law explains how things fall apart, it doesn’t explain how things come together.

II. Beyond Biological Evolution: A Cosmic Perspective

Traditionally, evolution is primarily associated with biological life, as elucidated by Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection. Darwin described life’s transformation from a common ancestor into a diverse biosphere. However, the speaker argues that restricting evolution to biology overlooks a broader, cosmic phenomenon. Non-living systems also evolve, exemplified by the diversification of minerals. Starting with a handful of simple primordial minerals, over billions of years, approximately 6,000 mineral species have emerged, increasing in complexity and informational content. Furthermore, minerals and life co-evolve, with minerals playing a crucial role in life’s origin and life subsequently influencing mineral diversity (approximately one-third of Earth’s mineral diversity is attributed to life). This interconnectedness necessitates a broadened scope for evolutionary theory.

III. Common Criteria of Evolving Systems

To encompass all evolving systems – living and non-living – the speaker identifies three common criteria:

1. Many Interacting Components: All evolving systems are composed of numerous interacting parts (e.g., flour, sugar, apples in an apple pie).
2. Numerous Configurations: Evolving systems can generate a wide range of arrangements of those components (e.g., varying apple pie recipes).
3. Selection for Function: Configurations are subjected to selection based on their ability to perform a specific function (e.g., butter creating flakiness in a pie crust, enhancing its tastiness).

The final configuration, like a successful apple pie, retains the same matter as the initial ingredients but exhibits a more organized and functional arrangement. The key is not the matter itself, but its arrangement.

IV. Persistence and the Drivers of Complexity

The presentation distinguishes between different forms of persistence:

• Static Persistence: The ability of an entity to remain unchanged over time (e.g., diamonds, formed under extreme conditions, persisting at the surface).
• Dynamic Persistence: The continuation of activity and exchange within a system (e.g., fire, hurricanes, stars, life). Life, in particular, demonstrates dynamic persistence through innovations like flight, echolocation, and photosynthesis.
• Novelty Generation: The ability to create new configurations and functions that promote persistence. This is highlighted as life’s “greatest superpower.”

The speaker emphasizes that understanding persistence is as crucial as understanding decay, as something must exist before it can decay. This leads to the proposal of a missing law of nature – a law of evolution centered on function.

V. Functional Information: A New Metric

To quantify functionality, the speaker introduces the concept of functional information. This metric measures the fraction of a system’s configurations that can achieve a specific function. Systems with fewer configurations capable of achieving a function have higher functional information. Examples include:

• Books: Few word combinations convey meaningful information, resulting in high functional information.
• DNA: Few DNA strands code for useful proteins, indicating high functional information.
• Minerals/Crystals: Few atomic arrangements form stable crystals, demonstrating high functional information.
• Apple Pies: Few recipes create an award-winning pie, signifying high functional information.

As entropy increases, pockets of the universe can simultaneously increase in functional information.

VI. The Law of Increasing Functional Information

The speaker and their team propose a Law of Increasing Functional Information, stating that for any system meeting the three criteria outlined earlier (many components, numerous configurations, selection for function), its functional information will increase over time. This law is presented as a metaphorical counterbalance to the Second Law of Thermodynamics – the Second Law describes the destination (disorder), while the Law of Increasing Functional Information describes the journey (complexity). Together, they provide a more complete picture of the universe’s behavior.

VII. Implications and a Paradigm Shift

The proposed law challenges a purely mechanistic view of the universe, suggesting that function, purpose, and even meaning are inherent aspects of reality. The speaker argues that understanding complexity requires acknowledging the drivers of persistence and novelty. This necessitates three key shifts in the scientific paradigm:

1. Expand Evolutionary Theory: Beyond biology to encompass all evolving systems.
2. Recognize an Arrow of Complexity: A counterbalancing force to entropy, driving the generation of order.
3. Elevate Information: To the same level of importance as mass, charge, and energy in the natural world.

VIII. Conclusion: A Universe Alive with Meaning

The presentation concludes by reiterating Sagan’s analogy of inventing the universe to bake an apple pie, but emphasizes that this is only the beginning of the story. Every element of an apple pie, from atoms to the act of baking itself, represents a product of evolution. The speaker encourages the audience to contemplate their own contribution to the ongoing evolution of the universe, suggesting that science can embrace both mechanism and purpose. The universe is not just a collection of particles, but a cosmos “alive with meaning and contextual relational value.”