Artificial creation
Encyclopedia
Artificial Creation is a field of research that studies the primary synthesis of complex life-like structures from primordial lifeless origins.
The field bears some similarity to artificial life
, but unlike artificial life, artificial creation focuses on the primary emergence of complex structures. Artificial creation does not rely exclusively on the application of evolutionary computation
and genetic algorithms to optimize artificial creatures or grow synthetic life forms. Artificial creation instead studies systems of rules of interaction, initial conditions and primordial building blocks that can generate complex life-like structures, based exclusively on repeated application of rules of interaction.
An essential difference that distinguishes artificial creation from other related fields is that no explicit fitness function
is used to select for fit structures. Structures exist based only on their ability to persist as entities that do not violate the system's rules of interaction. Artificial creation studies the way in which complex emergent properties can arise to form a self-organizing system.
, computer science
, mathematics
, engineering
and other fields. Artificial creation differs from these in that it focuses on underlying properties of systems that can generate the endless environmentally interactive complexity of living systems.
One of the primary impetuses for the exploration of artificial creation comes from the realization in the artificial life
and evolutionary computing fields that some basic assumptions common in these fields represent subtle mischaracterizations of natural evolution
. These fall into two general classes: 1) there are fundamental problems with the use of fitness functions for the primary synthesis of complex systems, and 2) the process of self-replication
used in almost all artificial life research is not a fundamental property of self-organizing systems.
(or objective function) is central to artificial life
systems. The fitness function
is used to drive a given artificial evolution process to create synthetic organisms capable of performing a given task. However, fitness functions, even aggregate high-level ones, drive evolving systems to particular solutions and place a ceiling on innovation and complexity. Natural evolution
does not drive organisms toward particular solutions to problems. There is no motive force for evolution
in our universe beyond that of adherence to physical law. This is a subtle point: when modern organisms are viewed in a local context it does appear that they are evolving to optimize particular abilities that will help them survive. This is not the case in a global sense. In fact, the pressure to optimize a given ability comes from the current state of a given population. The only fundamental selective pressure is the ability of structures to adhere to physical law. Stochastic
events initiated the appearance of features that we might view as adaptive traits, and it is the local evolution of these traits that much of evolutionary theory is based upon.
The universe maintains its own consistency. However, when trying to model the universe, or create artificial organisms by mimicking natural evolution, the application of fitness functions that select for particular abilities force an unnatural bias onto the evolving organisms.
In evolutionary biology, it is well understood that all properties of organisms and ecosystems are emergent properties of fundamental physical law. The conceptual problems related to generations, offspring and populations that occur in artificial life
systems stem from the fact that self-replication is itself an innovation of life on Earth. The dynamics observed in modern self-replicating life forms on Earth are extremely complex emergent properties of the organisms themselves, not driving forces imposed by an external controlling entity.
The field bears some similarity to artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
, but unlike artificial life, artificial creation focuses on the primary emergence of complex structures. Artificial creation does not rely exclusively on the application of evolutionary computation
Evolutionary computation
In computer science, evolutionary computation is a subfield of artificial intelligence that involves combinatorial optimization problems....
and genetic algorithms to optimize artificial creatures or grow synthetic life forms. Artificial creation instead studies systems of rules of interaction, initial conditions and primordial building blocks that can generate complex life-like structures, based exclusively on repeated application of rules of interaction.
An essential difference that distinguishes artificial creation from other related fields is that no explicit fitness function
Fitness function
A fitness function is a particular type of objective function that is used to summarise, as a single figure of merit, how close a given design solution is to achieving the set aims....
is used to select for fit structures. Structures exist based only on their ability to persist as entities that do not violate the system's rules of interaction. Artificial creation studies the way in which complex emergent properties can arise to form a self-organizing system.
Origins
Although concepts and elements of artificial creation are represented to some degree in many areas, the field itself is less than a decade old. There are models of self-organizing systems that produce emergent properties in biologyBiology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
and other fields. Artificial creation differs from these in that it focuses on underlying properties of systems that can generate the endless environmentally interactive complexity of living systems.
One of the primary impetuses for the exploration of artificial creation comes from the realization in the artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
and evolutionary computing fields that some basic assumptions common in these fields represent subtle mischaracterizations of natural evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
. These fall into two general classes: 1) there are fundamental problems with the use of fitness functions for the primary synthesis of complex systems, and 2) the process of self-replication
Self-replication
Self-replication is any behavior of a dynamical system that yields construction of an identical copy of that dynamical system. Biological cells, given suitable environments, reproduce by cell division. During cell division, DNA is replicated and can be transmitted to offspring during reproduction...
used in almost all artificial life research is not a fundamental property of self-organizing systems.
Issues
The concept of a fitness functionFitness function
A fitness function is a particular type of objective function that is used to summarise, as a single figure of merit, how close a given design solution is to achieving the set aims....
(or objective function) is central to artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
systems. The fitness function
Fitness function
A fitness function is a particular type of objective function that is used to summarise, as a single figure of merit, how close a given design solution is to achieving the set aims....
is used to drive a given artificial evolution process to create synthetic organisms capable of performing a given task. However, fitness functions, even aggregate high-level ones, drive evolving systems to particular solutions and place a ceiling on innovation and complexity. Natural evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
does not drive organisms toward particular solutions to problems. There is no motive force for evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
in our universe beyond that of adherence to physical law. This is a subtle point: when modern organisms are viewed in a local context it does appear that they are evolving to optimize particular abilities that will help them survive. This is not the case in a global sense. In fact, the pressure to optimize a given ability comes from the current state of a given population. The only fundamental selective pressure is the ability of structures to adhere to physical law. Stochastic
Stochastic
Stochastic refers to systems whose behaviour is intrinsically non-deterministic. A stochastic process is one whose behavior is non-deterministic, in that a system's subsequent state is determined both by the process's predictable actions and by a random element. However, according to M. Kac and E...
events initiated the appearance of features that we might view as adaptive traits, and it is the local evolution of these traits that much of evolutionary theory is based upon.
The universe maintains its own consistency. However, when trying to model the universe, or create artificial organisms by mimicking natural evolution, the application of fitness functions that select for particular abilities force an unnatural bias onto the evolving organisms.
In evolutionary biology, it is well understood that all properties of organisms and ecosystems are emergent properties of fundamental physical law. The conceptual problems related to generations, offspring and populations that occur in artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
systems stem from the fact that self-replication is itself an innovation of life on Earth. The dynamics observed in modern self-replicating life forms on Earth are extremely complex emergent properties of the organisms themselves, not driving forces imposed by an external controlling entity.