Reductionism suggests that intricate systems can be broken down into their constituent parts, enabling us to comprehend the complex system by examining the properties of these smaller components. According to this perspective, psychology can be dissected into biology, biology into chemistry, and chemistry into physics. Within this framework, it’s plausible to envision that human behavior could eventually be distilled into a physical model and controlled using a computer programming language.
On the contrary, the holistic approach contends that the entirety of a system transcends the mere sum of its individual parts. It recognizes that entities can exhibit emergent properties—qualities that arise when they are integrated into a larger system. The concept of emergent properties may seem somewhat abstract, so today, I aim to delve deeper into this idea and provide concrete examples.
Emergent properties fall into two distinct categories: weak emergent properties and strong emergent properties.
Weak emergent properties cannot be anticipated solely based on the fundamental attributes of the subcomponents. However, they can be elucidated by examining the interactions among these subcomponents. In contrast to weak emergent properties, strong emergent properties resist explanation or prediction, even when armed with a comprehensive understanding of the interactions and behaviors of individual components. They give birth to entirely new and unforeseen characteristics that cannot be simplified to the interactions of the individual components.
In 1970, the British mathematician John Horton Conway introduced a concept known as the “Game of Life.” This entity is not a conventional game in the traditional sense; rather, it involves defining initial conditions and observing how patterns evolve over time. The rules governing this “game” are exceedingly straightforward. It unfolds on a two-dimensional grid composed of square cells, each of which can exist in one of two states: alive or dead. While the ideal grid size is theoretically infinite, players can choose to operate on a smaller grid if they wish to engage with less complex patterns. The Game of Life adheres to four basic rules, which are as follows:
- Any live cell with fewer than two live neighbors dies and turns into a gray cell, as if by underpopulation.
- Any live cell with two or three live neighbors lives on to the next generation.
- Any live cell with more than three live neighbors dies, as if by overpopulation.
- Any dead cell with exactly three live neighbors becomes a live cell, as if by reproduction.
In the illustrations below, I will use yellow to depict a live cell while gray to depict a dead cell.
Let’s examine a simple scenario in the Game of Life where the initial setup consists of three live cells arranged in a row. In this configuration, the leftmost cell, having only one neighbor, will die in the next iteration. The same fate awaits the rightmost cell. However, the center cell, with two neighbors, will survive. Meanwhile, the dead cells positioned above and below the center cell each have three live neighbors, causing them to come to life in the next iteration. Consequently, the three-cell horizontal pattern transforms into a three-cell vertical pattern in the next iteration. By applying the same logic, the subsequent iteration reverts to the original three-cell horizontal pattern. In other words, this process constitutes an oscillator; it alternates between two distinct states.
In the Game of Life, most complex structures either evolve into new stable patterns, fade away, or continually change. However, some patterns exhibit a unique behavior: they repeat themselves after a certain number of iterations and move across the grid. I call those patterns “walkers.” The illustration below shows a walker that repeats itself every four iterations and slides diagonally by one cell towards the bottom right.
Furthermore, the Game of Life can generate structures that produce new complex patterns and propel these new structures in a fixed direction. I call those specialized structures “shooters.” You can try out this structure yourself with the following link. This pattern repeats itself and generates a “walker” every 30 iterations.
Things get very interesting when we have complex structures interacting with one another. I strongly suggest you watch this amazing YouTube video above.
This video shows some very interesting things you can do with the Game of Life. Some of the patterns are so complicated that we cannot easily predict the new property from the game’s rules. In other words, we have strong emergent properties. In fact, one can demonstrate that the game of life can be used as a universal tuning machine, which can be programmed to do any computing like modern computers.
When considering the potential for the emergence of complex patterns, one can draw parallels between the Game of Life and the processes involved in the formation of DNA. DNA, which consists of four building blocks—adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T)—could theoretically arise through random processes given a sufficient amount of time. However, Earth’s finite age of approximately 4 billion years poses a constraint. While this may seem like an immense amount of time, it’s important to note that for much of Earth’s history, conditions were inhospitable to life. Many biologists agree that even 4 billion years might not be long enough for the spontaneous emergence of DNA. Therefore, there must be a guiding process at work.
Drawing an analogy from the Game of Life described earlier, we observe that even with simple rules, complex structures can emerge. Mobility, for instance, arises as an emergent property when a group of cells interact with each other. When mobile structures encounter other complex formations, intriguing effects can transpire, leading to higher-order emergent properties. By defining the right rules and initial conditions, progressively more complex emergent properties can manifest, eventually leading to the emergence of DNA capable of self-replication.
In a broader perspective, I’ve previously discussed the concept that the delicate balance between chance and necessity plays a vital role in the emergence of complex life forms. In the context of Conway’s Game of Life, the initial conditions and rules represent the “necessity” part of this equation. They determine the ultimate form of life, even if the specific outcome cannot be predicted solely from those initial conditions. This perspective implies that there is no free will, and everything is predetermined by the inherent rules and conditions governing the system. The content of this blog had already been predetermined during the Big Bang.
If we allow one to add or delete a random cell every now and then, beautiful complex structures can still emerge, but now things are no longer predetermined. This is the “chance” part of the argument. There needs to be a delicate balance between chance and necessity. If we add too many random cells to the board, then we might not be able to get any meaningful structures; things can get out of hand easily and become chaotic.
Chance and necessity are necessary but not sufficient conditions for life to emerge. If one plays with the came, one can find that with some conditions, the structure can disappear or go into a steady state and not evolve anymore. We need to add one more condition to guarantee life formation. This condition is called purpose. On the other hand, if there is too little chances, the new changes will fade out and return to a rigid and predetermined world.
In the opening chapter of Rick Warren’s best-selling book, “The Purpose Driven Life,” he emphasizes a profound perspective: “It is not about you.” Warren suggests that the purpose of an individual’s life extends far beyond personal fulfillment, peace of mind, happiness, family, career, or even one’s wildest dreams and ambitions. Instead, he asserts that understanding one’s purpose on this planet begins with acknowledging a higher power, often referred to as God, and recognizing that individuals are born with a purpose and for a purpose that is greater than themselves.
So, how does God manifest His purpose in this world? To draw a parallel with Conway’s Game of Life, where selective addition or removal of cells can influence the evolution of life, one might consider that God can intervene in the world by directing or orchestrating events. If circumstances appear to veer off course, God can introduce specific elements, like cells in the game, to guide events in alignment with His purpose. This intervention distinguishes itself from random events because it is purposeful and intentional.
To illustrate this concept further, consider the analogy of the Allied forces during World War II deciphering the supposedly unbreakable German Enigma code. Instead of continuously exploiting their success, which might have alerted the Germans to change the code, the Allies selectively used the information to create an appearance of random victories within statistical norms. Similarly, God’s interaction with the world may appear as random events to casual observers, but behind these events lies a deliberate purpose. Every divine intervention is strategically placed to enable certain outcomes to materialize.
It’s crucial to recognize that not all events are dictated by God; He also allows for genuinely random events to occur, thus preserving the concept of free will. The interplay between God’s purposeful interventions and the randomness of the world represents a complex interplay that many theologians and philosophers have contemplated throughout history.
In another one of my blog posts, I explored the concept of a feedback control system as a model for understanding how God interacts with the world, guiding its development to fulfill His purpose. Recognizing that you are created by God and for God carries profound significance, emphasizing that you are not a product of random events. As Rick Warren aptly put it in his book, “life is about letting God use you for His purpose, not your using Him for your own purpose.” Life takes on profound meaning when you comprehend that you are an integral part of His master plan. When your intentions and actions align with God’s purpose for you, the path to your ultimate destination becomes more straightforward. Conversely, if your will and actions deviate from God’s purpose, reaching that destination will require much more effort. It is only by understanding your purpose and aligning your will with His that you can navigate toward your final destination smoothly.