``The arrival of the fittest'': Toward a theory of biological organization (Q1319900)

In 1904, \textit{DeVries} [Species and varieties: Their origin by mutation, Open Court, Chicago] stated: ``Natural selection may explain the survival of the fittest, but it cannot explain the arrival of the fittest''. This quote is the motivation for the paper, which develops a theory of biological organization formulated using the \(\lambda\)-calculus which is briefly described. The theory is interpreted as an ``abstract chemistry'' capturing its ``constructive capability'' (``collision of molecules generates specific new molecules'') and the ``equivalence property'' (``many different reactants can yield the same stable product''), but does not pretend to ``imitate or emulate the details of actual chemistry''. Computer experiments simulating the dynamics of an initial set of objects combining according to the rules of \(\lambda\)-calculus and a diversity of constraints and boundary conditions yield different levels of organization, self-maintenance (not necessarily in terms of all the objects present, but in the structure of the set), robustness to perturbations, and other properties that remind those of biological systems. The authors suggest that a theory of biological organization is a necessary complement to evolutionary theory and that a formal apparatus for such a theory should be sought (one incorporating more details of the chemistry, I would presume). The \(\lambda\)-system is a stepping-stone.