'Nature's missing law': Scientists propose 'survival of fittest' like law for non-living things

Darwin's 'survival of the fittest' is a popular law quoted by many. However, it has a limitation, it is only applicable to the living. However, as per new research, it may actually also be applicable to the non-living, like minerals, stars and hurricanes.

Nature's 'missing law'

Scientists and philosophers have proposed the existence of a fundamental law, which they speculate governs the non-living world, similar to the popular concept of "survival of the fittest" in Darwinian evolution.

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They've labelled this proposed law as nature's 'missing law,' and they suggest that various non-living systems, such as minerals, stars, and hurricanes, are composed of multiple components that can combine in diverse ways, with some configurations persisting or lasting longer, while others do not. This, they suggest, is dependent on a number of selection pressures.

Dynamic law

Dr Michael Wong, the lead author of the study from the Carnegie Institution for Science, highlighted the universality of this proposed law.

"Our proposal applies to static systems, like minerals, and also to dynamic systems, like hurricanes, stars and life," said Wong.

The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, introduced the concept of three distinct selection pressures that affects evolving systems: stability, novelty, and the ability to sustain fundamental processes.

"The functional information of a system will increase (i.e., the system will evolve) if many different configurations of the system are subjected to selection for one or more functions," write the researchers.

This perspective, as per Wong, underscores the idea that the cosmos is rooted in function and emphasises the crucial relationship between emerging functions and their environmental context.

"After all, Earth’s biosphere is the most complex evolving system we know of so far. We ought to ask ourselves: what functions are we promoting (or damaging) in our own evolving biosphere? What features of our present-day society are conducive to not only long-term persistence but long-term thriving, and what aspects require changing?"

The team's work has significant implications, prompting important questions about how human activities influence the long-term sustainability and prosperity of our evolving biosphere and society.

(With inputs from agencies)

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