in article cjk7g2$hhl$1{at}darwin.ediacara.org, PerlTCL at perltcl{at}yahoo.com
wrote on 10/1/04 11:26 AM:

> Guy Hoelzer  wrote in message
> news:...
>> Hi Paul,
>> 
>> in article chpsl7$n80$1{at}darwin.ediacara.org, Paul at paulw{at}mmail.ath.cx
>> wrote on 9/9/04 8:25 AM:
>> 
>>> How far are we from being able to answer the why question? We
know inanimate
>>> salts tends to form crystals in order to minimize energy from
our physics
>>> course. But this is very far from being ble to explain why viruses,
>>> bacteria,
>>> trees, animals tend to reproduing themselves-- and not to
mention why the
>>> necessity of evolving themselves? What is the physical
compelling reason to
>>> do
>>> that for? Where to start looking for the why?
>> 
>> In my opinion, the deepest scientific paradigm we have for answering the
>> "why" questions is thermodynamics.  The only hope of
reaching deeper would
>> be to hypothesize about the reasons that thermodynamic laws exist in the
>> universe.  Many evolutionary biologists are comfortable arguing that natural
>> selection (or possibly genetic drift, or mutation) is the
"ultimate" answer
>> to any biological "why" question;; but that begs the
question of why natural
>> selection exists.  I see natural selection, like all other dynamical
>> processes in the universe, as a fundamental part of an emergent phenomenon
>> serving thermodynamic imperatives.  Stan Salthe, a philosopher of biology,
>> has recently published a paper expanding on this view, but I am afraid I
>> don't have the reference for you.
>> 
>> Cheers,
>> 
>> Guy
> 
> Anyone on the planet Earth can honestly say that he/she can understand
> the  physical necessity of cell, virus, bacteria reproduction and
> evolution from thermodynamics? Honestly now.

Your question is not a proper sentence, so I am not sure what you are
asking.  The individual words, however, suggest to me that you didn't read
my post very carefully.  I never suggested that cells, viruses, or the
process of reproduction were physical NECESSITIES.  I don't think that they
are physical necessities any more than convection, or lightening, or
vortices, or galaxies, or any other particular phenomena.  I do, however,
think that all processes (e.g., reproduction) and dissipative systems (e.g.,
cells) are underpinned by their service to thermodynamics through
maximization of the rate of entropy gain in the universe.  Honestly.

Cheers,

Guy
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