用信息熵与物理理论解释生命意义如何生成
A Physical and Mathematical Framework for the Semantic Theory of Evolution
- 将生物通信编码的任意性与证据理论结合建模
- 揭示意义生成过程对应熵减与热力学熵增并行
- 适用于从简单反应到复杂人类语言的全谱系
语义演化理论（STE）认为，从遗传密码到人类文化符号系统，生命以一系列任意通信代码为根本特征。这些任意性使得在每一层级上，都能在多个可能的对应关系中选择其一并生成意义，从而催生更多创新并拓展生命形式的可能性。本文将STE建立在有意义信息的物理理论基础上，并证明生物所采用的任意通信代码的关键特征可由证据理论（ET）表达。具体而言，本文针对仅对刺激序列做出反应的生物，调整了ET的适用方式；对具备预测能力的生物，阐述了其基本原理；并展示了一种适用于人类最复杂通信系统的非常规版本。最后，本文将自然趋势中模糊性降低的现象，表述为信息熵最小化与热力学熵最大化之间的协同作用。
原文摘要 · Abstract (English)
The Semantic Theory of Evolution (STE) takes the existence of a number of arbitrary communication codes as a fundamental feature of life, from the genetic code to human cultural communication codes. Their arbitrariness enables, at each level, the selection of one out of several possible correspondences along with the generation of meaning. STE enables more novelties to emerge and suggests a greater variety of potential life forms. With this paper I ground STE on physical theories of meaningful information. Furthermore, I show that key features of the arbitrary communication codes employed by living organisms can be expressed by means of Evidence Theory (ET). In particular, I adapt ET to organisms that merely react to sequences of stimuli, explain its basics for organisms that are capable of prediction, and illustrate an unconventional version suitable for the most intricate communication codes employed by humans. Finally, I express the natural trend towards ambiguity reduction in terms of information entropy minimization along with thermodynamic entropy maximization.
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