What is existence, what is life, and what is AI?

January 22, 2023

Existence is a balancing act. Energy seeking equilibrium seems to be everything in this universe. Everything in this universe seems to be "stuff seeking stability" (SSS or "3S"). Everything is in motion (moving or being moved) pushed or pulled by different forces. In seeking balance, equilibrium, or stability, different forms of matter come into existence. The compounded accretion and aggregation of little pieces of stuff seeking stability generate everything in the universe from cosmology to biology, including the generation of intelligence (both human and artificial). 

This article looks into cosmology, biology, and intelligence under the perspective of "stuff seeking stability" (3S).  

Cosmology

The cosmos can be seens as energy seeking stability. The Big Bang theory traces the current universe back to a very dense and hot packet of energy. Instability in the high density and high temperature environment led to stability-seeking expansion and cooling. The stability-seeking expansion and cooling began 13.8 billion of Earth years ago, and continues to this date.  

1. Planck Epoch (0 to 10^-43 seconds). Everything was unified within a planck (smallest possible size in the universe, 1.6 x10-35 m) in the high density and high temperature (10 to the power of 34 Kelvin). Everything was moving internally (high temperature) and gravitating in quantum size. Expansion and cooling off began at time zero. 
2. Grand Unified Theory (GUT) Epoch (10^-43 to 10^-36 seconds). All forces and particles try to reunify, but expansion prevails and different forces begin to differentiate.
3. Electroweak Epoch (10^-36 to 10^-12 seconds). The electromagnetic force and the weak nuclear force were still unified. 
4. Quark Epoch (10^-12 to 10^-6 seconds). The universe continued expanding and cooling down into a hot plasma composed of subatomic particles called quarks and gluons.
5. Hadron Epoch (10^-6 to 1 second). Quarks and gluons combined to form particles called hadrons such as protons and neutrons, which quickly dominate the universe. 
6. Lepton Epoch (1 second to 10 seconds): The motions of the expanding and cooling universe created leptons (charged particles with spin such as electrons and neutrinos), which quickly dominated the universe.
7. Photon Epoch (10 seconds to 380,000 years). As electrons jumped down from higher energy levels to lower ones, the excess energy was released into space in the luminous energy packets known as photons. At about year 300,000, the "recombination" era begins, when the gravitational motions of the expanding and cooling universe combined protons and electrons into the first atoms of hydrogen (one proton in nucleus), helium (two protons with one or two neutrons), and some lithium (three protons with up to four neutrons). Note that the amount of protons in an atom's nucleus (atomic number) determines the element and it's defining characteristics. All elements have the same components, but in different quantities, which cause different properties and characteristics.  
8. Dark Ages (after the Big Bang to about 100 million years). During all the epochs above until about 100 million years after the Big Bang, the universe was dark, filled with a hot and dense soup of particles without any stars emitting light.
9. Cosmic Dawn and Reionization (around year 100 million to year 1 billion). The gravitational motions of the universe combined the existing gases of hydrogen, helium, and some lithium into the first stars. The intense ultraviolet radiation emitted by these stars ionized hydrogen atoms, liberating their protons and electrons. The universe became transparent to the light of stars. The motions of gravitation within the stars fused atoms together creating heavier elements up to iron. Once iron comes was formed in some stars, they became too heavy, losing equilibrium between gravity and electromagnetism. Some of these stars collapsed into themselves, which pushed too many like charged particles together, causing an explosion due to the repulsive forces of magnetism. The high energy levels and corresponding gravitational motions after the explosion fused some atoms together into heavier elements. The rocky debris from the explosion gravitated together into the formation of celestial bodies such as planets, moon, and asteroids. The large rocks revolving around neighboring stars are planets; smaller rocks gravitating around planets  are moons; and tiny rocks gravitating in bands are asteroids. 
10. Galaxies (After 1 billion years through the present). Stars joined together in galaxies gravitating or revolving around black holes and influenced by dark matter and dark energy. Over time, some galaxies got together in clusters, all shaping the present structure of the universe.

In the expanding universe, the formation of subatomic particles, atoms, elements, stars, galaxies, and planets seems to be all a balancing act of "stuff seeking stability" (SSS or 3S) between opposite (attractive vs repulsive) forces. 

Humans have identified four fundamental forces: electromagnetic force (interaction of charged particles for attraction of opposite charges and repulsion of similar charges); strong nuclear force (gluons and mesons holding quarks together to form protons and neutrons); weak nuclear force (W and Z bosons chipping off quark charges turning protons into neutrons and vice versa); and gravity (revolving motion bending space time). 

Some forces create opposite effects. For example, the gravitational movement of gravity ends up pushing stuff together, but particles of like charges repel each other. Gravity pushes together. The repulsion of like charges of electromagnetism pushes stuff apart. The dynamic seeking of stability, balance, and equilibrium between opposite forces explains everything in the universe from cosmology to biology. 

Biology

Biological life can be seen as organic compounds seeking electromagnetic stability.

Planet Earth is the host of biological life. The formation of planet Earth occurred over billions of years within the early solar system. It involved the accretion of small particles and the gravitational interaction of larger bodies. The generally accepted model for Earth's formation is known as the "giant impact hypothesis." Here is a summary of the key stages in the formation of the solar system and Earth:

1. Solar Nebula. The motions of gravity formed a solar nebula, which is a rotating gas cloud (76% hydrogen and 24% helium) together with stardust debris from previous supernova explosions.  
2. Formation of the Protostar (Sun). The center of the solar nebula, where most of the material accumulated, became a protostar that gradually grew in mass and was pressed together by gravity until the pressure initiated nuclear fusion, marking the birth of the Sun.
3. Planetesimals. Smaller particles of stardust debris in the solar nebula began to collide and stick together due to gravitational motion, growing larger over time through gravitational accretion.
4. Protoplanets. As planetesimals continued to collide and merge, larger bodies called protoplanets formed. 
5. Giant Impact Hypothesis. According to this hypothesis, a Mars-sized protoplanet, often referred to as "Theia," collided with the young Earth protoplanet mass about 4.5 billion years ago. The impact between Earth and Theia led to the ejection of a significant amount of material into space. This material later coalesced to form the Moon. The remaining debris from the collision eventually merged to form the proto-Earth. The proto-Earth underwent a process called differentiation, where heavier materials sank to the core, and lighter materials formed the mantle and crust. As Earth cooled, the outer layers solidified, forming a solid crust. Water vapor in the atmosphere condensed to form oceans. Earth continued to accrete material from the surrounding solar nebula, gradually reaching its current size. The gravitational interactions with other bodies in the solar system helped stabilize Earth's orbit. The early Earth was a hot place full of volcanoes. The early atmosphere was likely composed of gases released from that volcanic activity. 

Organic compounds are carbon-based compounds. Organic compounds seeking electromagnetic stability became the protagonists of the phenomena called life, which began on planet Earth about 4 billion years ago. All life on Earth is based on carbon, the king of congeniality, able to form bonds with other elements and able to form long molecular chains with itself and other elements. Carbon is very versatile because it can form single, double, and triple bonds. It can also form chains, branched chains, and rings when joined to other carbon atoms. Carbon's versatility comes from various characteristics: 

• Mid-range electronegativity. Electronegativity is the tendency of atoms to collect electrons. When two atoms have a similar electronegativity neither is strong enough to strip electrons away from the other. Carbon has a mid-range electronegativity, so it tends to form covalent bonds (i.e. share bonds instead of stripping them away) with atoms of similar electronegativity. 
• Tetravalency. Carbon atoms have four electrons in their outer shells. Carbon needs eight electrons to fill its outer shell and achieve electromagnetic stability. This is because the octet rule states that applies to carbon and to other elements in the same row as carbon, such as nitrogen, oxygen, and the halogens (F, Cl, Br, and I) state that atoms need eight electrons to be stable. To complete the octet configuration and achieve electromagnetic stability, carbon needs to gain 4 more electrons or lose 4 electrons. Losing electrons does not happen because it requires too much energy to strip off the electrons away. Gaining 4 new electrons does not happen because the nucleus has 6 protons and cannot hold on to the full repulsion of eight electrons. Therefore, to complete the octet and achieve electromagnetic stability, carbon shares 4 electrons with other atoms.
• Catenation. A carbon atom to bond with any number of other carbon atoms to form straight chains, branched chains, rings of various sizes, and long polymers (long molecules). 

Polymers (long molecules) made up of a carbon-based sugar, a phosphate, and a nitrogen base are the electromagnetic strands or strips of life. A polymer made up of a sugar called ribose (5 carbon, 10 hydrogen, and 5 oxygen atoms) with a phosphate and a nitrogenous base form an acid called ribonucleic acid (RNA). Two strands of a very similar polymer with a slightly different sugar (four atoms of oxygen instead of five) joined together by nitrogenous bases form the acid polymer called deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). 

RNA and DNA are the "code" strips of life. The "code" lies in the nitrogenous bases that bond into the strands of sugar and phosphate. In DNA, nitrogenous bases bond perpendicularly to strands of sugar and phosphate. Hydrogen bonds form at the end of the perpendicular nitrogenous bases and tie two strands together in what looks like a ladder. The sugar-phosphate strands are the side rails of the "ladder". The nitrogenous bases bound by the hydrogen bonds are the steps of the "ladder". 

The nitrogenous bases or "steps" of the DNA "ladder" move around attracting certain amino acids sequences dictated by electromagnetism. The amino acids that were influenced to bind together by the nitrogenous bases in DNA, end up combining and piling up together into self-folding 3-D structures called proteins. Seeking energy stability, proteins fold into different shapes based on the configuration that represents the lower energy state possible. Following that dynamic electromagnetic and energy-stability seeking process, proteins fold into thousands of different shapes. The proteins end up becoming the building blocks of cells, and the "facilities" and "accessories" that make possible the biological functions of life. 

Each organic compound of life is "stuff seeking stability". The organic compounds and their functions are a result of the stability-seeking process of balancing the different attractive and repulsive forces of nature. The aggregate or system-wide balancing act of seeking energy equilibrium or stability is what is known as life.   

Intelligence

The motions of the universe after the big bang, and all this "stuff seeking stability" generated stars, planets, and organic compounds that not only formed life, but also intelligent life. Intelligence is problem solving ability. Intelligent life has a range of free will or agency to solve problems. Intelligent life can choose between instability and stability, and between different levels of either. 

Biological intelligence is the aggregate problem-solving (stability-seeking) agency of an organic system. Approximately 10 billion years after the big bang, natured produced organic life on planet Earth. Approximately 4 billion years after the beginning of organic life on Earth, humans created digital computers. After 80 years of developing and programming computers, humans have developed functional artificial intelligence (AI). 

AI is computerized human-like intelligence. It is remarkable that advanced species of biologically intelligence such as humans were able to create non-biological intelligence. Instead of being ruled by biology (rules coming from DNA and RNA interactions), non-biological intelligence can follow different sets of rules such as the rules of computer science, binary computer programming, and eventually quantum computing. 

Computers are the greatest invention of humans in history. All future inventions of significant relevance will be co-invented by humans and AI-powered computers. Computers are electronic devices that can be programmed to perform sequences of arithmetic and/or logical functions using a binary number system represented by electronic on and off switches. These machines can be equipped and programmed to perform the functions of intelligence. These are the most exciting times in the history of humanity. The best is yet to come. 

No one knows what will happen next. Don't miss out. Stay tuned. 

Creatix.one, AI for everyone.