(1) A question for Richard: Would it not be the gene pool, rather than the
(which one?) genome that would be the site of genetic variability? Thus
the population would be the generator, and owner, of genetic informational
entropy. Each realized genome would be one informational selection
(localization) from that entropic field, which would be somewhat like a
'wave function' in that new alleles would be forming all the time.
Richard said
>Dear FISers,
>I have enjoyed this QI topic and all the thought-provoking posts, some of
>which are beyond my expertise but interesting nonetheless.� I�m a
>biologist with strong interests in evolutionary biology.� So, changing the
>discussion a little to suit my interests, the following is my take on QI,
>as it pertains to evolutionary genomics.
>On comparing genomes to black holes for interpreting biological aspects of
>�quantum information�
>How should a biologist, especially an evolutionary biologist,
>differentiate �quantum information,� such as discretely digital
>information, from information that is communicated continuously, perhaps
>resembling analogs of wave functions?� If this differentiation is
>reasonable, could it shed light on the role of �quantum information� (QI)
>in biosystems?
>Firstly, I will assume Richard Dawkins (e.g., 1995) is correct in his
>assertion that genes are pure, digital information.� They contain bits of
>information as nucleotides, bytes as codons, rendering the genes
>themselves irreducible encryptions of whole proteins.� I will assume this
>qualifies them as QI.� The continuous production of variation by way of
>allele formation would be equivalent to a genomic wave function, which I
>will assume to be collapsible when genetic variation results in another
>speciation.
>Imagine a genome with no alleles, which means it has only one expression
>for each gene, and thus no genetic variation.� From an operational point
>of view, all the genetic information (or QI) is in place; this genome
>might survive from generation to generation, so long as no important
>changes occur along the way.� But if an important change occurs the genome
>will lack the variation it needs to meet the challenge of adaptation.�
>Variation, then, equates to a continuous supply of QI generated by the
>genome.� Variation also equates to the entropy of a black hole, as viewed
>by theorists of quantum gravity.
>Stephen Hawking (2001, pp. 63-64), for example, theorizes that black holes
>have both entropy and temperature:� �We have come to recognize that this
>standing still of real or imaginary time (either both stand still or
>neither does) means that the spacetime has a temperature, as I have
>discovered for black holes.� Not only does a black hole have a
>temperature, it also has a quantity called entropy.� The entropy is a
>measure of the number of internal states (ways it could be configured on
>the inside) that the black hole could have without looking any different
>to an outside observer, who can only observe its mass, rotation, and
>charge.�
>Setting aside the tempting question of genomic temperature, we can draw a
>fair comparison between the internal configuration of a black hole � its
>entropy � with that of a genome.� Hawking says a black hole�s entropy is
>the number of ways it can be configured on the inside without appearing
>different on the outside.� Likewise for a genome; its alleles amount to
>the number different ways it can be configured (on the inside) without
>appearing as a different species to an (outside) observer.� The more
>variation (entropy) a genome possesses, the more QI it will have to
>survive random changes or selective sweeps.
>Hawking goes on to invoke the holographic principle to explain quantum
>gravity:� �This black hole entropy [S] is given by a very simple formula I
>discovered in 1974.� It [S] equals the area of the [event] horizon of the
>black hole:� there is one bit of information about the internal state of
>the black hole for each fundamental unit of area of the horizon.� This
>shows that there is a deep connection between quantum gravity and
>thermodynamics� It also suggests that quantum gravity may exhibit what is
>called holography� If quantum gravity incorporates the holographic
>principle, it may mean that we can keep track of what is inside black
>holes.�
>The holographic principle may also work well for biological species; the
>complete genome of a species is contained in almost every cell of its
>organisms.� This mean that almost any cell, no matter where it is located
>in vitro, should yield a complete organism if properly cloned.� And this
>holographic-like principle of cloning has been unambiguously demonstrated.
>In summery, the QI of genomes appears to be isomorphic with the QI of
>black holes.� This suggests to me that quantum gravity and quantum
>genomics operate on similar principles.� Furthermore, it implies that QI
>is an important aspect of biological evolution, especially when the genome
>is seen as an entropy generator for improving its survivability.
>References:
>Dawkins, R, 1995, River Out of Eden, Basic Books, NY.
>Hawking, S. 2001, The Universe In A Nutshell, Bantam Books, NY.
>
>Any thoughts on this adventurous comparison?
>�Best to all, Richard
(2) Aleks said:
> > Agreed, this relates to the problem of defining what is an event in
> > classical probability. In that respect, the definition of an event
> > depends on the time window within which we interpret two detections
> > as relating to the same event. This is how we have chosen to
> > conceptualize the world.
Andrei replied:
>Yes, it is a good formulation that the definition of an event (and thus
>a Kolmogorov model) depends on time window. Thanks! We shall use this
>point of view in future.
Stan says:
Then we can see how microscopic events in QM experiments can give
contradictory evidence 'simultaneously'. The cogent moment of a detector
worked by humans will be VERY large compared to the cogent moment of the
microscopic observables interacting with it. In one observational moment,
very many of the observed's moments will be logged in effectively
simultaneously. Thus different small events will be recorded together in
one large moment, and they may be mutually contradictory because of the
context of intrinsic time differences.
STAN
_______________________________________________
fis mailing list
fis@listas.unizar.es
http://webmail.unizar.es/mailman/listinfo/fis
Received on Tue May 30 22:13:53 2006
