Autopoiesis and Cellular Automata

Friends!
The term autopoiesis, which means "self-production" was originally
introduced by Chilean biologists Francisco Varela and Humberto Maturana
in the early 1970s. They attempted to create simple models which
capture the essence of the living organism, like:

-- Its identity remains constant while its components continually
change.
-- It is a whole (holon) despite the dynamics of its component
parts.
-- It is self organizing, can repair itself, and its properties
emerge.

The original model was written in FORTRAN and placed in a lattice. The
unit had a interior wrapped in a membrane through which it interacted
with the exterior.

You are invited to experience a more sophisticated autopoiesis model,
the proliferon, which applies two powerful tools, JAVA and CA.
http://www.what-is-cancer.com/papers/ca1/ca174.htm

The experiment illustrates a profound philosophical question. Are
living organisms teleological? Do they have an end purpose? The
proliferon has two end purposes: To mature and produce offspring.

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Relevant Pages

  • Autopoiesis and Cellular Automata
    ... The term autopoiesis, ... capture the essence of the living organism, ... Do they have an end purpose? ... proliferon has two end purposes: ...
    (comp.ai.alife)
  • Autopoiesis and Cellular Automata
    ... The term autopoiesis, ... capture the essence of the living organism, ... Do they have an end purpose? ... proliferon has two end purposes: ...
    (comp.ai.alife)