[LINK] Causal Entropic Forces

Qiaochu_Yuan

This paper seems relevant to various LW interests. It smells like The Second Law of Thermodynamics, and Engines of Cognition, but I haven't wrapped my head enough around either to say more than that. Abstract:

Recent advances in fields ranging from cosmology to computer science have hinted at a possible deep connection between intelligence and entropy maximization, but no formal physical relationship between them has yet been established. Here, we explicitly propose a first step toward such a relationship in the form of a causal generalization of entropic forces that we find can cause two defining behaviors of the human “cognitive niche”—tool use and social cooperation—to spontaneously emerge in simple physical systems. Our results suggest a potentially general thermodynamic model of adaptive behavior as a nonequilibrium process in open systems.

They clearly say are talking about entropy. As do most of their cites. I think "power" would be the wrong term.

Power maximisation and entropy maximisation are closely related concepts - but these ideas can be teased apart:

Given the opportunity, evolved organisms can be expected to spitefully destroy resources accessible only to other unrelated agents - assuming that doing so is inexpensive. I think that entropy maximisation is more clearly consistent with such behaviour than power maximisation is.

Also, entropy is a global measure - while power is a measure of flux in some kind of pipe. Entropy maximisation is thus a simpler idea.

I can't actually read the paper, but according to the accompanying article jamesf linked to:

Hoping to firm up such notions, Wissner-Gross teamed up with Cameron Freer of the University of Hawaii at Manoa to propose a “causal path entropy.” This entropy is based not on the internal arrangements accessible to a system at any moment, but on the number of arrangements it could pass through on the way to possible future states.

They are talking about "causal path entropy", a term they defined, not "entropy", the well known physics term. C... (read more)

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[LINK] Causal Entropic Forces

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[LINK] Causal Entropic Forces

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