Re:Algorithm discovers how six molecules could evolve into l...
by dvt on Sunday October 04, 2020 @03:31PM
(#24681650)
> The rules in Conway's game of life are simpler than real world physics
This is tricky. Conway's rules are "simpler" but far more rigid (e.g. tractable/computable). In real life, we deal with not just plain ol' turbulence (Navier–Stokes three-dimensional existence is yet to be proved), but also quantum effects (some of which might also not be computable, such as entropy in a Hamiltonian system).
Re:Algorithm discovers how six molecules could evolve into l...
by fullstackchris on Sunday October 04, 2020 @04:24PM
(#24682001)
I'd say it's ultimately hard to argue if these more random constraints (compared to Conway's game of life) are more _helpful_ or _harmful_ towards the ability to produce life or life-like structures.
Re:Algorithm discovers how six molecules could evolve into l...
by dvt on Sunday October 04, 2020 @06:02PM
(#24682607)
> ...more random constraints
Want to point out that this is much more than simply "random" constraints (the universe isn't merely a probabilistic machine). These are not (or at least might not be) computable constraints; any comparison with Conway's Game of Life stops right there.
Re:Algorithm discovers how six molecules could evolve into l...
by namanyayg on Monday October 05, 2020 @12:17AM
(#24684523)
Perhaps not Conway's version, but a 3 dimensional cellular automaton with 50-100+ states for each cell could very likely result in intelligent life over a large timeframe.
Greg Egan discusses a similar idea with his concept of the "Autoverse"
On Earth, there was a lot of primordial soup, and there were a lot of chemical reactions. On a span of millions of years, complex data structures (such as RNA) may have occurred constantly somewhere on the planet. Every now and then, a cell randomly formed. Sometimes prokaryotes with RNA formed, like weird things in Conway's game of life. And then maybe once upon a time, a cell with just the right RNA to make it be able to reproduce in the ooze formed.
That or life on Earth is panspermic and we have skipped the pre-prokaryotic evolution altogether