Information Transitions in Life

Meeting Description:  The goal of this working group is to formalize the information theoretic definitions and metrics required to understand the transition from non-living to living matter, and the transitions in the complexity and adaptability of life over time. What new definitions of life are required to encompass the range of life-like processes from the clearly abiotic to the simply biotic to the hierarchically living? Given the central importance of the need for living entities to assess and respond to their environment, and to replicate or at least preserve their current state, the various perspectives of information theory would seem to be of central importance. Indeed, many recent efforts have taken an information theoretic perspective on life and the goal of this working group is to determine what syntheses are available in this body of work and what definitions, techniques, and results are still needed to fully understand life-like processes at various levels of organization.