Abstract
How can one explain the emergence of order in the Darwinian evolution of life? In the history of philosophy and biology, life was explained teleologically by non-causal (“vital”) forces aiming at some goals in nature. In a famous quotation Kant said that the “Newton for explaining a blade of grass” could never be found (Sect. 3.1). Boltzmann could show that living organisms are open dissipative systems which do not violate the second law of thermodynamics: Maxwell’s demons are not necessary to explain the arising order of life in spite of the increasing entropy and disorder in closed systems according to the second law. Nevertheless, in the statistical interpretation from Boltzmann to Monod the emergence of life is only a contingent event, a local cosmic fluctuation at the boundary of the universe (Sect. 3.2). In the framework of complex systems the emergence of life is not contingent, but necessary and lawful in the sense of dissipative self-organization. The growth of organisms and species is modeled as the emergence of macroscopic patterns caused by nonlinear (microscopic) interactions of molecules, cells, etc., in phase transitions far from thermal equilibrium (Sect. 3.3). Even ecological populations are understood as complex dissipative systems of plants and animals with mutual nonlinear interactions and metabolism with their environment (Sect. 3.4). Spencer’s idea that life is determined by a structural evolution with increasing complexity seems to be mathematized by complex dynamical systems. Is the “Newton of life” found? The theory of complex dynamical systems does not explain what life is, but it can model how forms of life can arise under certain conditions. Thus, the existence of our life is still a wonder for us as well as for our ancestors, even if we shall eventually model the complex dynamics of life.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
For historical sources of Sect. 3.1 compare Mainzer, K.: Die Philosophen und das Leben. In: Fischer, E.P., Mainzer, K. (eds.): Die Frage nach dem Leben. Piper: München (1990) 11–44
Diels-Kranz (see Note 2, Chapter 2) 12 A 30
Aristotle: Historia animalium 588 b 4
Aristotle: De generatione animalium II 736 b 12–15. a 35-b2
Descartes, R.: Discours de la méthode. Leipzig (1919/20) 39
Borelli, G.A.: De motu animalium. Leipzig (1927) 1
Leibniz, G.W.: Monadology §64
Bonnet, C.: Contemplation de la nature (1764). Oeuvres VII, 45
Kant, I.: Kritik der Urteilskraft. Ed. G. Lehmann, Reclam: Stuttgart (1971) 340
Goethe, J.W.: Dichtung und Wahrheit. In: Werke ( Hamburger Ausgabe) Bd. IX 490
Schelling, F.W.J.: Sämtliche Werke Bd.II (ed. Schröter, M. ), München (1927) 206
Darwin, C.: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. London (1859)
Darwin, C.: The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex. London (1871)
Spencer, H.: Structure, Function and Evolution (ed. Andrenski, S. ), London (1971)
Darwin, C.: For a modern evaluation of Darwin’s position compare Richards, R.: The Meaning of Evolution. University of Chicago Press: Chicago (1992)
Boltzmann, L.: Der zweite Hauptsatz der mechanischen Wärmetheorie. In: Boltzmann, L. (ed.): Populäre Schriften. Leipzig (1905) 24–46
Cf. Schneider, I.: Rudolph Clausius’ Beitrag zur Einführung wahrscheinlichkeitstheoretischer Methoden in die Physik der Gase nach 1856. Archive for the History of Exact Sciences 14 (1974/75) 237–261
Prigogine, I.: Introduction to Thermodynamics of Irreversible Processes (see Note 43, Chapter 2)
Cf. Boltzmann, L.: Über die mechanische Bedeutung des zweiten Hauptsatzes der Wärmetheorie (1866). In: Boltzmann, L.: Wissenschaftliche Abhandlungen (ed. Hasenöhrl, F.) vol. 1 Leipzig (1909), repr. New York (1968) 9–33.
Analytischer Beweis des zweiten Hauptsatzes der mechanischen Wärmetheorie aus den Sätzen über das Gleichgewicht der lebendigen Kraft (1871) 288–308
Cf., e.g., Einstein’s famous article `Über die von der molekularkinetischen Theorie der Wärme geforderte Bewegung von in ruhenden Flüssigkeiten suspendierten Teilchen’. Annalen der Physik 17 (1905) 549–560
Poincaré, H.: Sur les tentatives d’explication méchanique des principes de la thermodynamique. Comptes rendus de l’Académie des Sciences 108 (1889) 550–553.
Zermelo, E.: Über einen Satz der Dynamik und die mechanische Wärmetheorie. Annalen der Physik 57 (1896) 485
Cf. Popper, K.R.: Irreversible processes in physical theory. Nature 181 (1958) 402–403
Reichenbach, H.: The Direction of Time. Berkeley (1956)
Grünbaum, A.: Philosophical Problems of Space and Time. Dordrecht (1973)
Hintikka, J., Gruender, D., Agazzi, E. (eds.): Probabilistic Thinking, Thermodynamics and the Interaction of the History and Philosophy of Science II. Dordrecht/Boston/ London (1978)
Boltzmann, L.: Der zweite Hauptsatz der mechanischen Wärmetheorie. In: Boltzmann, L.: Populäre Schriften (see Note 13 ) 26–46
Boltzmann, L.: Über die Frage nach der objektiven Existenz der Vorgänge in der unbelebten Natur. In: Boltzmann, L.: Populäre Schriften (see Note 13 ) 94–119
Monod, J.: Le Hasard et la Nécessité. Editions du Seuil: Paris (1970)
Primas, H.: Kann Chemie auf Physik reduziert werden? Chemie in unserer Zeit 19 (1985) 109–119, 160–166
Bergson, H.L.: L’évolution créative. Paris (1907).
Heitler, W.H.: Über die Komplementarität von lebloser und lebender Materie. Abhandlungen der Math.-Naturw. Klasse d. Ak. d. Wiss. u. Lit. Mainz Nr. 1 (1976) 3–21
Driesch, A.: Philosophie des Organischen. Leipzig (1909).
Whitehead, A.N.: Process and Reality. An Essay in Cosmology. New York (1978)
Schrödinger, E.: Was ist Leben? Piper: München (1987) 133
Schrödinger, E.: Was ist Leben? (see Note 25) 147
Thompson, W: The Sorting Demon of Maxwell (1879). In: Thompson, W: Physical Papers I-VI, Cambridge (1882–1911), V, 21–23
Prigogine, I.: Time, irreversibility and structure. In: Mehra, J. (ed.): The Physicist’s
Conception of Nature. D. Reidel: Dordrecht/Boston (1973) 589
Eigen, M.: The origin of biological information. In: Mehra, J. (ed.): The Physi- cist’s Conception of Nature (see Note 28 ) 607.
Fig. 3.2 shows a so-called coat gene obtained by nuclease digestion of phage MS2-RNA (Min Jou, W., Haegemann, G., Ysebaert, M., Fiers, W: Nature 237 (1972) 82). This gene codes for a sequence of 129 amino acids. The structure is further spatially folded. Also compare Perel- son, A.S., Kauffman, S.A. (eds.): Molecular Evolution on Ragged Landscapes: Proteins, RNA, and the Immune System. Santa Fé Institute Studies in the Sci- ences of Complexity, Proceedings vol. 9. Addison-Wesley: Redwood City (1990)
For a survey cf. Depew, D.J., Weber, B.H.: Evolution at a Crossroads. The New Biology and the New Philosophy of Science. MIT Press: Cambridge, MA (1985)
Ebeling, W., Feistel, R.: Physik der Selbstorganisation und Evolution. Akademie-Verlag: Berlin (1982)
Haken, H., Haken-Krell, M.: Entstehung von biologischer Information und Ordnung. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft: Darmstadt (1989).
Hofbauer, L.: Evolutionstheorie und dynamische Systeme. Mathematische Aspekte der Selektion. Springer: Berlin (1984)
Eigen, M.: Homunculus im Zeitalter der Biotechnologie — Physikochemische Grundlagen der Lebensvorgänge. In: Gross, R. (ed.): Geistige Grundlagen der Medizin. Springer: Berlin (1985) 26, 36 for Fig. 3.4a—d.
Maynard Smith, J.: Optimization theory in evolution. Annual Review of Ecological Systems 9 (1978) 31–56
Mainzer, K.: Metaphysics of nature and mathematics in the philosophy of Leibniz. In: Rescher, N. (ed.): Leibnizian Inquiries. University Press of America: Lanham/New York/London (1989) 105–130
Dyson, F.: Origins of Life. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge (1985)
Kauffman, S.: Autocatalytic sets of proteins. Journal of Theoretical Biology 119 (1986) 1–24
For a survey cf. Kauffmann, A.S.: Origins of Order: Self-Organization and Selection in Evolution. Oxford University Press: Oxford (1992)
Haken, H.: Synergetics (see Note 4, Chapter 1 ) 310
Hess, B., Mikhailov, A.: Self-organization in living cells. In: Science 264 (1994) 223–224
Hess, B., Mikhailov, A.: Ber. Bunsenges. Phys. Chem. 98 (1994) 1198–1201 (extended version)
Susman, M.: Growth and Development. Prentice-Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ (1964)
Prigogine, I.: Order through fluctuation. In: Jantsch, E., Waddington, C.H. (eds.): Evolution and Consciousness. Human Systems in Transition. Addison-Wesley: London (1976) 108
Gerisch, G., Hess, B.: Cyclic-AMP-controlled oscillations in suspended dictyostelium cells: Their relation to morphogenetic cell interactions. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 71 (1974) 2118
Rosen, R.: Dynamical System Theory in Biology. Wiley-Interscience: New York (1970)
Abraham, R.H., Shaw, C.D.: Dynamics — The Geometry of Bahavior (see Note 14, Chapter 2) 110 for Figs. 3. 5
Meinhardt, H., Gierer, A.: Applications of a theory of biological pattern formation based on lateral inhibition. J. Cell. Sci. 15 (1974) 321 (Figs. 3. 7–8 )
Meinhardt, M.: Models of Biological Pattern Formation. Academic Press: London (1982)
For a survey compare Gerok, W. (ed.): Ordnung und Chaos in der belebten und unbelebten Natur. Verhandlungen der Gesellschaft Deutscher Naturforscher und Ärzte. 115. Versammlung (1988), Stuttgart (1989)
Mainzer, K.: Chaos und Selbstorganisation als medizinische Paradigmen. In: Deppert, W., Kliemt, H., Lohff, B., Schaefer, J. (eds.): Wissenschaftstheorien in der Medizin. De Gruyter: Berlin/New York (1992) 225–258
Bassingthwaighte, J.B., van Beek, J.H.G.M: Lightning and the heart: Fractal behavior in cardiac function. Proceedings of the IEEE 76 (1988) 696
Goldberger, A.L., Bhargava, V., West, B.J.: Nonlinear dynamics of the heartbeat. Physica 17D (1985) 207–214
Goldberger, A.L., Bhargava, V., West, B.J.: Nonlinear dynamics in heart failure: Implications of long-wavelength cardiopulmonary oscillations. American Heart Journal 107 (1984) 612–615
Ree Chay, T., Rinzel, J.: Bursting, beating, and chaos in an excitable membrance model. Biophysical Journal 47 (1985) 357–366
Winfree, A.T.: When Time Breaks Down: The Three-Dimensional Dynamics of Electrochemical Waves and Cardiac Arrhythmias. Princeton (1987)
Guevara, M.R., Glass, L., Schrier, A.: Phase locking, period-doubling bifurcations, and irregular dynamics in periodically stimulated cardiac cells. Science 214 (1981) 1350
Cf. Johnson, L.: The thermodynamic origin of ecosystems: a tale of broken symmetry. In: Weber, B.H., Depew, D.J., Smith, J.D. (eds.): Entropy, Information, and Evolution. New Perspectives on Physical and Biological Evolution. MIT Press. Cambridge, MA (1988) 75–105
Schneider, E.D.: Thermodynamics, ecological succession, and natural selection: a common thread. In: Weber, B.H., Depew, D.J., Smith, J.D. (eds.): Entropy, Information, and Evolution (see Note 42) 107138
Odum, E.P.: The strategy of ecosystem development. Science 164 (1969) 262–270
Margalef, R.: Perspectives in Ecological Theory. University of Chicago Press: Chicago (1968)
Lovelock, J.E.: The Ages of Gaia. Bantam (1990)
Schneider, S.H., Boston, P.J. (eds.): Scientists on Gaia. MIT Press: Cambridge, MA (1991)
Pimm, S.: The Balance of Nature, University of Chicago Press: Chicago (1991)
Cf. Rosen, R.: Dynamical System Theory in Biology (see Note 37)
Freedmann, H.I.: Deterministic Mathematical Models in Population Ecology. Decker: New York (1980)
Abraham, R.H., Shaw, C.D.: Dynamics — The Geometry of Behavior (see Note 14, Chapter 2 ) 85
Lotka, A.J.: Elements of Mathematical Biology. Dover: New York (1925)
Volterra, V.: Leçons sur la théorie mathématique de la lutte pour la vie. Paris (1931)
Haken, H.: Synergetics (see Note 4, Chapter 1) 130, 308
Rettenmeyer, C.W.: Behavioral studies of army ants. Kansas Univ. Bull. 44 (1963) 281
Prigogine. I.: Order through Fluctuation: Self-Organization and Social System. In: Jantsch, E., Waddington, C.H. (eds.): Evolution and Consciousness (see Note 35 ) 111
Prigogine, I., Allen, P.M.: The challenge of complexity. In: Schieve, W.C., Allen, P.M.: Self-Organization and Dissipative Structures. Applications in the Physical and Social Sciences. University of Texas Press: Austin (1982) 28
Wicken, J.S.: Thermodynamics, evolution, and emergence: Ingredients of a new synthesis. In: Weber, B.H., Depew, D.J., Smith, J.D. (eds.): Entropy, Information, and Evolution (see Note 42 ) 139–169
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1997 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mainzer, K. (1997). Complex Systems and the Evolution of Life. In: Thinking in Complexity. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-13214-2_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-13214-2_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-662-13216-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-662-13214-2
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive