VIII. Earth Earns: An Open Participatory Earthropocene to Astropocene CoCreative Future

1. Mind Over Matter and Energy: Quantum, Atomic, Chemical, Astronomic Realms

Rosenthal, Elisabeth and Felicity Barringer. Green Promise Seen in Switch to LED Lighting. New York Times. May 30, 2009. Beyond all the hybrid hype, a truly siginificant energy-saving advance is the replacement of bulbs altogether by bright Light Emitting Diodes. With an indefinite life and twice as efficient as even compact bulbs, their full utilization would result in a 50% drop in carbon dioxide emissions. Mainly based on gallium nitride (GaN and InGaN) semiconductors, they represent a premier case of appropriate technology. And their further import could be as a harbinger of a dawning Light Age.

Rutherford, Adam. Creation: How Science is Reinventing Life Itself. New York: Current Books, 2014. Akin to Michael Tennesen’s The Next Species, a British geneticist and journalist takes the widest view of cosmic evolution whereof humankind becomes a potential second singularity. This long passage occurs over two main parts. The Origin of Life is seen as Begotten, Not Created with earth’s rough course traced from nucleotides to a noosphere. The Future of Life then goes on, if we may so choose, as Created, Not Begotten. This awesome new Genesis creation, just bursting upon us, most of all involves reading and reprogramming nature’s genetic Digital DNA code.

Sanchez-Lengeling, Benjamin and Alan Aspuru-Guzik. Inverse Molecular Design Using Machine Learning: Generative Models for Matter Engineering. Science. 361/348, 2018. In a Frontiers of Computation section, Harvard University and Toronto University systems chemists consider technical approaches to this intentional phase of cosmic material (re)creation. Indeed by way of our human collective acumen, we peoples are actually embarking upon a work of “reverse engineering” nature’s animate physical and chemical evolution by careful application of its universal algorithome principles. See also in this section Toward a Predictive Theory of Correlative Materials by Paul Kent and Gabriel Kotliar.

In a Frontiers of Computation section, Harvard University and Toronto University systems chemists consider technical approaches to this intentional phase of cosmic material (re)creation. Indeed by way of our human collective acumen, we peoples are actually embarking upon a work of “reverse engineering” nature’s animate physical and chemical evolution by careful application of its universal algorithome principles. See also in this section Toward a Predictive Theory of Correlative Materials by Paul Kent and Gabriel Kotliar.

Sendhoff, Bernhard, et al, eds. Creating Brain-Like Intelligence from Basic Principles to Complex Intelligent Systems. Berlin: Springer, 2009. (LNAI Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence 5436) Other citations in this section are likewise about humanity’s instant takeover of material nature so as to begin a new creation. What kind of a universe evolves its own ramifying “selected intelligence” which (whom) on a tiny planet, via a collaborative, sentient species, begins to intentionally carry further its ever increasing capacity both to gain knowledge and use for a better future? Noted also in Systems Neuroscience.

Siler, Todd. Fractal Reactor: Re-Creating the Sun. Leonardo. 40/5, 2007. The innovation consultant and artist proposes a plasma nuclear fusion device based on an intentional continuation of nature’s intrinsic self-similarity.

Slattery, Oliver and Yong-Su Kim. Teleportation beyond Network Neighbors. Mature. 605/624, 2022. NIST, Maryland and Korea Institute of Science quantum researchers review a Qubit Teleportation Between Non-Neighboring Nodes in a Quantum Network paper by S. Hermans, et al in this issue (605/624) about a breakthrough which could facilitate a practical, efficient Quantum Internet (see Abstract below). See also a New York Times science report (May25) “Quantum Internet” Inches Closer With Advance in Data Teleportation.

Future quantum internet applications will need an ability to share information across the network. Quantum teleportation methods promises a reliable transfer between distant nodes. But moving beyond directly connected nodes been hindered by the pre-shared remote entanglement, joint qubit readout and coherence times. Here we realize quantum teleportation between remote, non-neighbouring nodes enabled by key innovations in the qubit readout procedure, active memory qubit protection and a reduction of remote entanglement. Our work provides a prime building block for future quantum networks and teleportation-based multi-node protocols and applications. (Hermans excerpt)

Sole, Ricard, et al. Population Dynamics of Synthetic Terraformation Motifs. Royal Society Open Science. Online July, 2018. Barcelona systems biologists and ecologists scope out this vital project which we ought to get on with to intentionally and respectfully re-create a sustainable biosphere so as to foster a human/Earth personsphere.

Ecosystems are complex systems, currently experiencing several threats associated with global warming, intensive exploitation and human-driven habitat degradation. Because of a general presence of multiple stable states, including states involving population extinction, and due to the intrinsic nonlinearities associated with feedback loops, collapse in ecosystems could occur in a catastrophic manner. It has been recently suggested that a potential path to prevent or modify the outcome of these transitions would involve designing synthetic organisms and synthetic ecological interactions that could push these endangered systems out of the critical boundaries. In this paper, we investigate the dynamics of the simplest mathematical models associated with four classes of ecological engineering designs, named Terraformation motifs (TMs). (Abstract excerpt)

Southwell, Karen, ed. Quantum Coherence. Nature. 453/1003, 2008. A special section which seeks to tease out from sub-atomic “entanglements” its various facets such as ultracold atoms and a macroscopic “quantum internet.”

Su, Wu, et al. DNA-Templated Photonic Arrays and Assemblies: Design Principles and Future Opportunities. Chemistry A European Journal. 17/29, 2011. An example today the literature as human collaborative abilities take over material nature to begin an intentional re-creation good for cosmos and children. University of Leicester (Su and Vanessa Bonnard) and University of Strathclyde (Glenn Burley) researchers here join nucleotide and photon so as to enter a new Age of Life and Light. Whatever fantastic ordained reality that we do not yet understand is being revealed and offered to us?

Molecular photonics is a rapidly developing and multi-disciplinary field of research involving the construction of molecular assemblies comprising photoactive building blocks that are responsive to a light stimulus. A salient challenge in this field is the controlled assembly of these building blocks with nanoscale precision. DNA exhibits considerable promise as an architecture for the templated assembly of photoactive materials. In this Concept Article we describe the progress that has been made in the area of DNA photonics, in which DNA acts as a platform for the construction of optoelectronic assemblies, thin films and devices. (7983)

Tait, Steven. Surface Chemistry: Self-Assembling Sierpinski Triangles. Nature Chemistry. 7/5, 2015. A report on a technical paper Assembling Molecular Sierpinski Triangle Fractals in the same issue by Chinese and German scientists who found nature’s materiality to inherently form into these iconic geometries. To reflect a bit, from what kind of independent natural reality do these propensities arise, which are now passing to our sapient avail so as to begin, as the quotes alludes, a new cosmocene creation.

Defect-free Sierpiński triangles can be self-assembled on a silver surface through a combination of molecular design and thermal annealing. Three-fold halogen-bonding arrays and precise surface epitaxy preclude structural errors, thus enabling the high-level complexity of these supramolecular fractal patterns. (370) For the field of supramolecular chemistry – particularly for those researchers interested in surface functionalization and the realization of mathematical fractal designs – it is exciting to see the elements of rational instructed building block design, kinetic control, and error correction combined in harmony to produce such beautiful structures. As we look to the next challenges in the design of complex molecular systems and their use in novel materials, it is valuable to consider the importance of these particular elements and the principles for tuning molecular systems to achieve them. The final piece of the puzzle is to put them together to achieve spontaneous self-assembly in synthetic systems that approaches the elegance and complexity of self-assembled structures that we see all around us in the natural world. (371)

Tao, Kai, et al. Self-Assembling Peptide Semiconductors. Science. 358/885, 2017. We cite because Tel Aviv University biotechnologists describe how a facilitated passage from peptide biochemicals via oligomerized quantum dots can form semiconductor superstructures. Human intellect can lately delve into nature’s materiality so as to intentionally begin a new genesis, fittingly from the cradles of civilization.

For semiconductors, one often thinks of inorganic materials, such as doped silicon, or aromatic organic polymers and small molecules. Tao et al. review progress in making semiconductors based on self-assembling short peptides. The structures that form show extensive π and hydrogen bonding leading to a range of semiconductor properties, which can be tuned through doping or functionalization of the peptide sequences. These materials may shed light on biological semiconductors or provide an alternative for constructing biocompatible and therapeutic materials.

Terasa, Ivo, et al. Pathways towards truly brain-like computing primitives. MaterialsToday. October, 2023. In this Springer journal, twelve Institute of Materials Science, Kiel University, Germany researchers describe a novel application of AI neural large learning and an avail of animate complex system principles such as Distributed Plasticity: Operation near Criticality, Self-ordered Arrangement, Hierarchy, Modularity, Robustness, and Oscillatory Ensembles. In this regard, the team broaches an innovative synthesis of these methods and features by which to open a 2020s frontier of intentional cocreativity going forward.

Taking inspiration from biological and neural information processing, deep learning and artificial intelligence have made solutions to complex problems more feasible. To explore the capabilities of brain-like hardware computing, a platform with dynamic reconfigurable connections is mandatory. This work addresses this biological motivation and classifies them with respect to several fundamental principles of brain-like computing. The approaches range from interconnected nanogranular networks with dynamically reconfigurable connections and guided redox-wiring to the mimicking of neural action potentials by relaxation-type oscillators that are used as input stimuli. (Abstract excerpt)

The nervous systems of humans, mammals, and even simple living species like invertebrates are well adapted to changing environments. The remarkable interactions with their surroundings are a result of millions of years of evolution. Biological systems can perform cognitive tasks, such as pattern recognition, with low power consumption. Fundamental building blocks leading to such core abilities exploit neurons as central processing units, which are interconnected by synapses to form a complex dynamical three-dimensional network. It is therefore no surprise that attempts have been made to develop artificial information processing systems, to reach the performance and power efficiency of nervous systems. Machine Learning, Neuromorphic Engineering and in materia Computing can be identified as three main development avenues (1, 2)

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