From external to internal measurement: a form theory approach to evolution

The point of view of external observers has led to an explanation of life b ased on digitally encoded information. In contrast, the existence of natura l internal observers, or agents that belong to the same scale of the observ ed objects, explains the appearance of form centered approaches. The main c ontroversies in thermodynamics and evolution are due to the changes of pers pective, so as to speak, if measurement is considered to be external or int ernal. Equilibrium theories developed for closed systems under ideal condit ions are analogous to external measurements. On the other hand, morphogenet ic perspectives as far from equilibrium thermodynamics applicable to open s ystems allow to imagine self-organizing agents that perform local measureme nts. Chaitin's algorithmic approach would help to elucidate the relation be tween digitally encoded information and active forms, because forms and sha pes are responsible for specific pattern recognition and play a major role in the process of finding the proper measuring standard. The predominance o f form over digital records is illustrated by studying the mapping between genetic descriptions and functional shapes, originally suggested for RNA, b y Schuster. Therefore, interactions between living entities ale seen as rec iprocal measurement processes that bring about couplings (shortened descrip tions and local decreases of entropy) that are paid by partial record erasu re (increase of entropy). To conclude, this approach centered on the inner dynamics of form is appropriate for understanding how Lamarckism and the mo dern neutral theory of evolution can be integrated for expanding the neoDar winian perspective. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reser ved.