> > No, I don't doubt it (although I do doubt our ability to build it). > But, if we can build it, it *does* receive "complexity input" in the > form of its input -- the way we set it up. And perhaps the energy > needed to run it is another complexity input.
I would wager that the rules of physics required to simulate the earth at an atomic level are less complex than the current amount of biodiversity we see (and will see once AGI's start bootstrapping). > > Consider, for a moment, the acorn. An amazing thing. From one > perspective, it "has all the information necessary to grow a tree". > But that perspective is limited -- earthrotropic. Concretely, some of > the information about "how to grow into a tree" is embedded in the > composition of the soil, the cycle of day/night, etc. -- all the > circumstances it "finds itself in". To put it another way, the > algorithm that deciphers an acorn, or any other seed, is pretty > complex (and energy-bearing) itself. > You are absolutely correct in that sense. The acorn does receive and reflect complexity from the environment. That line of thought works within the context of the earth's biosphere. But It breaks down when you consider the earth as a relatively closed system. Complexity is mirrored within the context of the earth, but not within the context of the galaxy or universe because there's no way to receive or interpret such information. One could argue that sunlight is a form of complexity, but it's not really. Chlorophyll and warming of the atmosphere/water are the only means for sunlight to enter the biosphere, and these means aren't transducing any complexity information from it. They are just turning out sugar and warmth in a way devoid of real informational content. > We see complex systems, but we see thenm in a specific context. The > context is "background" -- deemed unimportant. But what if, in a > Kolmogorov sense, that background is the soil from which those complex > systems grow? > I don't buy it because the earth is a relatively closed system. Otherwise, I'd be inclined to agree. -brad ------- To unsubscribe, change your address, or temporarily deactivate your subscription, please go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/[EMAIL PROTECTED]
