The concept of evolutionary development of structures constituted a real rev- olution in biology: it was possible to understand how the very complex struc- tures of life can arise in an out-of-equilibrium system. The investigation of such systems has shown that indeed, systems under a flux of energy or matter can self-organize into complex patterns, think for instance to Rayleigh-Bernard con- vection, Liesegang rings, patterns formed by granular systems under shear. Fol- lowing this line, one could characterize life as a state of matter, characterized by the slow, continuous process that we call evolution. In this paper we try to identify the organizational level of life, that spans several orders of magnitude from the elementary constituents to whole ecosystems. Although similar structures can be found in other contexts like ideas (memes) in neural systems and self-replicating elements (computer viruses, worms, etc.) in computer systems, we shall concentrate on biological evolutionary structure, and try to put into evidence the role and the emergence of network structure in such systems.

Evolutionary Models for Simple Biosystems / F. Bagnoli. - STAMPA. - (2010), pp. 329-372.

Evolutionary Models for Simple Biosystems

BAGNOLI, FRANCO
2010

Abstract

The concept of evolutionary development of structures constituted a real rev- olution in biology: it was possible to understand how the very complex struc- tures of life can arise in an out-of-equilibrium system. The investigation of such systems has shown that indeed, systems under a flux of energy or matter can self-organize into complex patterns, think for instance to Rayleigh-Bernard con- vection, Liesegang rings, patterns formed by granular systems under shear. Fol- lowing this line, one could characterize life as a state of matter, characterized by the slow, continuous process that we call evolution. In this paper we try to identify the organizational level of life, that spans several orders of magnitude from the elementary constituents to whole ecosystems. Although similar structures can be found in other contexts like ideas (memes) in neural systems and self-replicating elements (computer viruses, worms, etc.) in computer systems, we shall concentrate on biological evolutionary structure, and try to put into evidence the role and the emergence of network structure in such systems.
2010
9789812838797
HANDBOOK ON BIOLOGICAL NETWORKS
329
372
F. Bagnoli
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
15-bagnoli.pdf

Accesso chiuso

Tipologia: Versione finale referata (Postprint, Accepted manuscript)
Licenza: Tutti i diritti riservati
Dimensione 944.64 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
944.64 kB Adobe PDF   Richiedi una copia

I documenti in FLORE sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificatore per citare o creare un link a questa risorsa: https://hdl.handle.net/2158/405110
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus ND
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? ND
social impact