This is part of a series: Define Life
In my previous post, I tried to make a more precise definition of life. Now, I’ll list some practical ramifications of it.
Defining Life – What it Means if I’m Right
Defining Life – Putting it All Together
This is part of a series: Define Life
I’ve listed the most common views on exactly what life is – now I’ll try to do better. But first, I’ll list my biases:
- In my opinion, there are a couple of inventions that will likely be created within the next 100 years which I think should be considered life. However, most people who I’ve met disagree. These inventions are:
- Clanking replicators
Self-sustaining, fully automated factories made of current human technology, or something not much more advanced. Each “cell” will be easily big enough to see, and would probably come in the form of a small building or a group of robots that can collectively sustain themselves, and even reproduce.
- Clanking replicators
Defining Life – Is it Only Physical?
This is part of a series: Define Life
As recently as 150 years ago, one of the most common scientific views of life was Vitalism. This view says that there’s something special about living things that distinguishes them from non-life, and causes them to do things and make substances that are found nowhere in nature. That “something”, they said, was its life force.
As scientists began to discover the chemical makeup of life, this view fell into disfavor. Today, if someone calls a biologist a vitalist, he usually means it as an insult.
In its place, most scientists now believe in a form of physicalism, which says that life is a machine. Furthermore, they tend to focus on the individual parts of living things much more than the whole. For example, it’s common to hear about someone discovering a gene that causes a disease or disorder, such as the most common type of mental retardation. But it’s much less common to hear about someone discovering exactly how and why that gene has its effect.
How did this happen? There were 2 main causes:
Defining Life – The Current Working Definition
This is part of a series: Define Life
The first definition of life that I’ll cover is the current working definition used by NASA.
Life:
- Is complex
- Is highly organized
- Is diverse
- Takes energy from its environment, and uses it
- Tend toward homeostasis, where it is “normal” and “healthy”
- Grows
- Reproduces
- Reacts to its environment
- Adapts to its environment
- Has a control system/nervous system
Strengths:
Continue reading Defining Life – The Current Working Definition
Erik Popp 