http://www.helsinki.fi/~aannila/arto/natprocess.pdf
Natural Process - Natural Selection Abstract Life is supported by a myriad of chemical reactions. To describe the overall process we have formulated entropy for an open system undergoing chemical reactions. The entropy formula allows us to recognize various ways for the system to move towards more probable states.These correspond to the basic processes of life i.e. proliferation,differentiation, expansion, energy intake, adaptation and maturation. We propose that the RATE OF ENTROPY PRODUCTION by various mechanisms is the fitness criterion of natural selection. The quest for more probable states results inorganization of matter in functional hierarchies. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. “Life is chemistry” is a cliché but it is one that deserves a reinspection. For a long time, it has been understood that chemical reactions lead to chemical equilibrium. Gibbs was first to realize that this stationary state, where chemical potentials μ on both sides of a reaction formula are equal, corresponds to the maximum entropy [1]. Chemical reactions as well as other processes, e.g. diffusion, heat flow from hot to cold and ion currents in electric fields that evolve towards increasing entropy are all called natural processes [2]. Does this mean that life is a natural process towards high-entropy states? The question has remained open despite many studies [3–8]. Since high-entropy states are often associated with high disorder and ordered structures are distinctive features of life, it is customarily thought that living processes work to reduce entropy rather than to increase it [9]. However, no firm proof has been given and it has remained obscure what prevents us from deriving characteristics of living matter from the fundamental principles. Is it a missing concept or a misconception or something else? http://www.helsinki.fi/~aannila/arto/natprocess.pdf
