Ricard Solé, Christopher P Kempes, Bernat Corominas-Murtra, Manlio De Domenico, Artemy Kolchinsky, Michael Lachmann, Eric Libby, Serguei Saavedra, Eric Smith, David Wolpert
{"title":"Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems.","authors":"Ricard Solé, Christopher P Kempes, Bernat Corominas-Murtra, Manlio De Domenico, Artemy Kolchinsky, Michael Lachmann, Eric Libby, Serguei Saavedra, Eric Smith, David Wolpert","doi":"10.1098/rsfs.2024.0010","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>It has been argued that the historical nature of evolution makes it a highly path-dependent process. Under this view, the outcome of evolutionary dynamics could have resulted in organisms with different forms and functions. At the same time, there is ample evidence that convergence and constraints strongly limit the domain of the potential design principles that evolution can achieve. Are these limitations relevant in shaping the fabric of the possible? Here, we argue that fundamental constraints are associated with the logic of living matter. We illustrate this idea by considering the thermodynamic properties of living systems, the linear nature of molecular information, the cellular nature of the building blocks of life, multicellularity and development, the threshold nature of computations in cognitive systems and the discrete nature of the architecture of ecosystems. In all these examples, we present available evidence and suggest potential avenues towards a well-defined theoretical formulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":13795,"journal":{"name":"Interface Focus","volume":"14 5","pages":"20240010"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11503024/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Interface Focus","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1098/rsfs.2024.0010","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2024/10/11 0:00:00","PubModel":"eCollection","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
It has been argued that the historical nature of evolution makes it a highly path-dependent process. Under this view, the outcome of evolutionary dynamics could have resulted in organisms with different forms and functions. At the same time, there is ample evidence that convergence and constraints strongly limit the domain of the potential design principles that evolution can achieve. Are these limitations relevant in shaping the fabric of the possible? Here, we argue that fundamental constraints are associated with the logic of living matter. We illustrate this idea by considering the thermodynamic properties of living systems, the linear nature of molecular information, the cellular nature of the building blocks of life, multicellularity and development, the threshold nature of computations in cognitive systems and the discrete nature of the architecture of ecosystems. In all these examples, we present available evidence and suggest potential avenues towards a well-defined theoretical formulation.
期刊介绍:
Each Interface Focus themed issue is devoted to a particular subject at the interface of the physical and life sciences. Formed of high-quality articles, they aim to facilitate cross-disciplinary research across this traditional divide by acting as a forum accessible to all. Topics may be newly emerging areas of research or dynamic aspects of more established fields. Organisers of each Interface Focus are strongly encouraged to contextualise the journal within their chosen subject.