From: tolman%asylum.cs.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Kenneth Tolman)
Subject: Intro to wacky theory (Tom replies to Tom)
Date: 5 Sep 92 21:16:57 MDT
Organization: University of Utah, CompSci Dept
Distribution: bionet

Thanks for your interesting observations.  Unfortunately, coming from a 
different vantage point, I am obligated to provide some contention.
I apologize, for I am certain that this will run on longer than it should.
For those of you solely interested in DNA, that will probably be the center
of disussion in a later article.  There are a few specific questions inside,
each of which are preceded by a number (comments especially welcome here).

"It is important to have a clear definition of information."

On that, I entirely agree.  However, I have never seen such a definition in
my life.  That is, there is no definition for the amount of information in the
universe.  If you know what it is please tell me.  I have seen various 
different attempts at this... 

Bennett suggested that it could be produced (and measured by) time, as a 
  deterministic algorithm unfolds its complexities (Alamo conference 1990)
Layzer suggested that it could not change, but that macroscopic information
  became microscopic information.  However, in his last sentences he suggested
  that the microscopic information does get lost, and that in some way the
  universe spontaneously creates information. (Sci American, 1975 Dec. issue)
Various authors have attempted to translate Shannon's information into 
  universal information, with relative degrees of contradictions (no success,
  as far as I have seen)


1. What was the information of the earliest stage of the universe? 

  You suggest that "the total information has to be going down towards
heat death".  This implies a high information.  However, the early universe
was very simple, so would it not have a low information?  Also, have not
the life forms on the planet steadily gained in their informational storage?
Do the stars represent information, because they are compact?  Would not
a more complex object have a higher information?

2. What is your definition of information?

  I consider information to be related to causal influence.  If something
affects something else, it has communicated.  Information would arise when
"something arose from nothing" to create a causal chain.  Specifically,
information would arise whenever a system has a nondetermined event
propagate forwards through it.  Typically, this would be from quantum
decoherence.  Information is NOT conserved in our universe, and goes up and
down like thus:

A----\                                    /-----E
down  >-----C                     D -----< up
B----/                                    \-----F

  Information is lost when the system moves from a state (A or B) to a new
state where its past cannot be ascertained.  For example, a tank with a hot
side and a cold side left alone for a day.  No one can tell the next day
which side was hot- information has been lost.
  Information rises when a system undergoes a transition from a single state D
to either one of a possibility of states (E or F)  A dissipative system 
undergoing a bifurcation finds a new equilibrium which has a more complex
structure (and has gained information).  A piece of DNA which is randomly
mutated has a higher information.  If that DNA survives, then that higher
information travels forwards through time.

Notice, that at all times energy is being dissipated, but the information is
sometimes going up, and sometimes going down.  In order to lose information,
energy must be dissipated.

Intuitively, this notion of information has to do with future causation.
If you write a message, and no one understands it (even though it has a lot
of good ideas) its informational impact is zero. (if it is destroyed)
If you create a new idea, or piece of DNA, and it is transmitted around
(and leads to more ideas) it raises the information.  If you destroy a 
species, you erase its information.

If you walk out and spit on the lawn, and it dissolves away then it has
zero information.  However, if someone sees you and remembers it, then it
raises information.  Information then is a fossilized capture of past
events.

Without a propagation mechanism, information can not rise.  Life forms
propagate through their DNA, and mutations increase the information they
contain.  Higher level life forms can explore and experiment with the
environment- and can propagate novel patterns through behavioral descent.
Humans can do incredible things with their complex symbols systems.

Information then, is a record of past events.  Events begin with some sort
of quantum decoherence (unless they can be traced back to the original
universe, which is doubtful for not even the stars can claim that).
Information goes away when events are forgotten by the universe, which is
due to dissipation.  However, I would not claim that information and entropy
can be equated in any direct way.  Nearly all activities require dissipation.

So there it is, basically.  Any comments would be more than welcome, 
especially harsh criticism.  I have a few problems with it myself...
If you think about the information contained in an arbitrary orgainism,
you can figure out what it is for yourself using this metric. (or can you,
what about epigenesis, can that raise the information?)

3. How would you define the informational content of say, the human genome?