Frontiers in Physiology (Oct 2012)
Field-control, phase-transitions, and life’s emergence
Abstract
Instances of critical-like characteristics in living systems at each organizational level (bio-molecules to ecosystems) as well as the spontaneous emergence of computation (Langton), do suggest the relevance of self-organized criticality (SOC). But extrapolating complex bio-systems to life’s origins, brings up a paradox: how could simple organics-- lacking the ‘soft matter’ response properties of today’s complex bio-molecules--have dissipated energy from primordial reactions (eventually reducing CO2) in a controlled manner for their ‘ordering’? Nevertheless, a causal link of life’s macroscopic irreversible dynamics to the microscopic reversible laws of statistical mechanics is indicated via the ‘functional-takeover’ of a soft magnetic scaffold by organics (c.f. Cairns-Smith’s crystal-scaffold). A field-controlled structure offers a mechanism for bootstrapping-- bottom-up assembly with top-down control: its super-paramagnetic colloidal components obey reversible dynamics, but its dissipation of magnetic (H)-field energy for aggregation breaks time-reversal symmetry. The responsive adjustments of the controlled (host) mineral system to environmental changes would bring about mutual coupling between random organic sets supported by it; here the generation of long-range correlations within organic (guest) networks could include SOC-like mechanisms. And, such cooperative adjustments enable the selection of the functional configuration by altering the inorganic dipolar network’s capacity to assist a spontaneous process. A non-equilibrium dynamics could now drive the kinetically-oriented system (trimming the phase-space via sterically-coupled organics) towards a series of phase-transitions with appropriate organic replacements taking-over its functions. Where available, experiments are cited in support of these speculations and for designing appropriate tests.
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