Newsgroups: comp.ai.alife
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From: gustav@diku.dk (Max Melchior)
Subject: Re: H Maturana's definition of life?
Message-ID: <gustav.779459144@thor.diku.dk>
Sender: gustav@thor.diku.dk
Date: Tue, 13 Sep 1994 12:25:44 GMT
References: <pvh.1.001128F7@slfoo.cybernet.za>
Organization: Department of Computer Science, U of Copenhagen
Lines: 20

pvh@slfoo.cybernet.za (Peter van Heusden) writes:

>With all the debate about a definiton of life going here... what do people 
>think of the definition offered by H Maturana in 'Autopoesis and cognition'? 


Its good that this definition finaly appears in comp.ai.alife. I have been 
very influenced by it, and every time I read another definition of life it
seems like they are missing something. In fact the concept of autopoiesis
could fit into a lot of subject-groups.
	But the definition I have seen (in 'Autopoiesis and cognition')
has a problem with the creation of these selfproducing systems. The beginning 
of life is still mysterious and only explained in the tautological definition:
to become living a system must fulfill the criteria of living.

Please point out other weak points.

Max Melchior (gustav@diku.dk)


