Notes for a Theory of Information in Physics (1)

One distinguishes between primary and derived ideas for analytic theories like this one here. In the old paradigm, spacetime, energymomentum, and laws of motion were given; in the new paradigm, Information, temperature, and autopoietic are given.

Remember that the Universe does not seem to have Physics Department, and Engineering Department: these are human partitions for the vast amount of ideas that a complex society needs. Both directions of ideas presented here may be the same as far as the way things really happen; but it helps us to chose one over the other. The entropic theory, for lack of a better name, I am presenting here, seems better dressed in the second form above.

Even though these are principles, or axioms. I give justifications here to choose them.

Information is in the name of a whole industry that appeared sometime during the early seventies of last century. Once the prices of processors were affordable even for Third World Professors like myself, it made sense to put Information on a higher pedestal than it used to be in Einstein's and even in more contrast with what it had in Newton's time.

Boltzmann had crossed the Rubicon with the entropy equation more than a hundred years ago:

Temperature entered the realm of founding principles then. It is the statistical value of energy. What may not be in this triad in most people's heads is the autopoietic part.

This requires a justification here.

The insight that drives this entropic theory is that, in the older paradigm Newton's Laws were given, once and for all. Some kind of tables of the truth delivered to Newton in some dream, or alchemical deliberation. One can imagine Galileo's proposal for the first law as correct, and accept that the second and third were commonsensical, to have a realistic model of the world; be it as it may, they represent the algorithm by which one will represent motion in spacetime. In the new paradigm, we also need an algorithm. Not only what objects are primary, but also how; are we going to construct explanations with these objects.

My reason for the autopoietic part, comes from the belief that the laws of behavior for entropy and temperature change as time passes. I cannot say that they are derived concepts from Newton's laws, because that is the other paradigm. I will be presenting a rearranged Newton's structure, not a new paradigm.

I believe that the Universe builds itself, it doesn't have a purpose: purpose is emergent in my view. In the beginning it didn't have a purpose, as complexity appeared, then autopoietic principles started to operate.

More to come.