Cronología / Chronology

Esta cronología es una idea del psicoanalista e investigador francés Théo Lucciardi y fue publicada originalmente en el número 3 de la revista LAPSUS NUMÉRIQUE. Su autor ha preparado esta versión actualizada a 2023 especialmente para este número de Aesthethica. La secuencia, que va desde la invención de la rueda hasta la IA generativa, permite detenernos en los grandes hitos del desarrollo científico tecnológico y a la vez advertir ve el grado de aceleración de la última década. Se pueden reconocer allí varios de los temas que integran la agenda contemporánea en materia de bioética y que están presentes en este número de la revista. Algunos de ellos son cruciales para la lectura ético-analítica que proponemos, como la vigencia de la lógica booleana, la actualización del Test de Turing o el porvenir de la IA y el Chat GPT

This chronology is an initiative of the French psychoanalyst and researcher Théo Lucciardi and was originally published in number 3 of the LAPSUS NUMÉRIQUE magazine. Its author has prepared this updated version to 2023 especially for this issue of Aesthethica. The sequence, which goes from the invention of the wheel to generative AI, allows us to stop at the great milestones of technological scientific development and at the same time notice the degree of acceleration of the last decade. Several of the issues that make up the contemporary agenda in bioethics and that are present in this issue of the magazine can be recognized there. Some of them are crucial for the ethical-analytical reading that we propose, such as the validity of Boolean logic, the updating of the Turing Test or the future of AI and Chat GPT

Turing Instabilities and Rotating Spiral Waves in Glycolytic Processes.

We study single-frequency oscillations and pattern formation in the glycolytic process modeled by a reduction in the well-known Sel'kov's equations (Sel'kov in Eur J Biochem 4:79, 1968), which describe, in the whole cell, the phosphofructokinase enzyme reaction. By using averaging theory, we establish the existence conditions for limit cycles and their limiting average radius in the kinetic reaction equations. We analytically establish conditions on the model parameters for the appearance of unstable nonlinear modes seeding the formation of two-dimensional patterns in the form of classical spots and stripes. We also establish the existence of a Hopf bifurcation, which characterizes the reaction dynamics, producing glycolytic rotating spiral waves. We numerically establish parameter regions for the existence of these spiral waves and address their linear stability. We show that as the model tends toward a suppression of the relative source rate, the spiral wave solution loses stability. All our findings are validated by full numerical simulations of the model equations. Finally, we discuss in vitro evidence of spatiotemporal activity patterns found in glycolytic experiments, and propose plausible biological implications of our model results.

Pattern formation features might explain homoplasy: fertile surfaces in higher fungi as an example.

Fungi show a high degree of morphological convergence. Regarded for a long time as an obstacle for phylogenetic studies, homoplasy has also been proposed as a source of information about underlying morphogenetic patterning mechanisms. The "local-activation and long-range inhibition principle" (LALIP), underlying the famous reaction-diffusion model proposed by Alan Turing in 1952, appears to be one of the universal phenomena that can explain the ontogenetic origin of seriate patterns in living organisms. Reproductive structures of fungi in the class Agaricomycetes show a highly periodic structure resulting in, for example, poroid, odontoid, lamellate or labyrinthic hymenophores. In this paper, we claim that self-organized patterns might underlie the basic ontogenetic processes of these structures. Simulations based on LALIP-driven models and covering a wide range of parameters show an absolute mutual correspondence with the morphospace explored by extant agaricomycetes. This could not only explain geometric particularities but could also account for the limited possibilities displayed by hymenial configurations, thus making homoplasy a direct consequence of the limited morphospace resulting from the proposed patterning dynamics.

Endogenous spatial pattern formation from two intersecting ecological mechanisms: the dynamic coexistence of two noxious invasive ant species in Puerto Rico.

Endogenous (or autonomous, or emergent) spatial pattern formation is a subject transcending a variety of sciences. In ecology, there is growing interest in how spatial patterns can 'emerge' from internal system processes and simultaneously affect those very processes. A classic situation emerges when a predator's focus on a dominant competitor releases competitive pressure on a subdominant competitor, allowing coexistence of the two. If this idea is formulated spatially, two interesting consequences immediately arise. First, a spatial predator/prey system may take the form of a Turing instability, in which an activator (the dispersing prey population) is contained by a repressor (the more rapidly dispersing predator population) generating a spatial pattern of clusters of prey and predators, and second, an indirect intransitive loop (where A beats B beats C beats A) emerges from the simple fact that the system is spatial. Two common invasive ant species, Wasmannia auropunctata and Solenopsis invicta, and the parasitic phorid flies of S. invicta commonly coexist in Puerto Rico. Emergent spatial patterns generated by the combination of the Turing mechanism and the indirect intransitive loop are likely to be common here. This theoretical framework and the realities of the natural history in the field could explain both the long-term coexistence of these two species, and the highly variable pattern of their occurrence across a large landscape.

Conway's "Game of Life" and the Epigenetic Principle.

Cellular automatons and computer simulation games are widely used as heuristic devices in biology, to explore implications and consequences of specific theories. Conway's Game of Life has been widely used for this purpose. This game was designed to explore the evolution of ecological communities. We apply it to other biological processes, including symbiopoiesis. We show that Conway's organization of rules reflects the epigenetic principle, that genetic action and developmental processes are inseparable dimensions of a single biological system, analogous to the integration processes in symbiopoiesis. We look for similarities and differences between two epigenetic models, by Turing and Edelman, as they are realized in Game of Life objects. We show the value of computer simulations to experiment with and propose generalizations of broader scope with novel testable predictions. We use the game to explore issues in symbiopoiesis and evo-devo, where we explore a fractal hypothesis: that self-similarity exists at different levels (cells, organisms, ecological communities) as a result of homologous interactions of two as processes modeled in the Game of Life.

A Turing-Hopf Bifurcation Scenario for Pattern Formation on Growing Domains.

In this paper, we study the emergence of different patterns that are formed on both static and growing domains and their bifurcation structure. One of these is the so-called Turing-Hopf morphogenetic mechanism. The reactive part we consider is of FitzHugh-Nagumo type. The analysis was carried out on a flat square by considering both fixed and growing domain. In both scenarios, sufficient conditions on the parameter values are given for the formation of specific space-time structures or patterns. A series of numerical solutions of the corresponding initial and boundary value problems are obtained, and a comparison between the resulting patterns on the fixed domain and those arising when the domain grows is established. We emphasize the role of growth of the domain in the selection of patterns. The paper ends by listing some open problems in this area.

Cooperativity to increase Turing pattern space for synthetic biology.

It is hard to bridge the gap between mathematical formulations and biological implementations of Turing patterns, yet this is necessary for both understanding and engineering these networks with synthetic biology approaches. Here, we model a reaction-diffusion system with two morphogens in a monostable regime, inspired by components that we recently described in a synthetic biology study in mammalian cells.1 The model employs a single promoter to express both the activator and inhibitor genes and produces Turing patterns over large regions of parameter space, using biologically interpretable Hill function reactions. We applied a stability analysis and identified rules for choosing biologically tunable parameter relationships to increase the likelihood of successful patterning. We show how to control Turing pattern sizes and time evolution by manipulating the values for production and degradation relationships. More importantly, our analysis predicts that steep dose-response functions arising from cooperativity are mandatory for Turing patterns. Greater steepness increases parameter space and even reduces the requirement for differential diffusion between activator and inhibitor. These results demonstrate some of the limitations of linear scenarios for reaction-diffusion systems and will help to guide projects to engineer synthetic Turing patterns.

Efecto del crecimiento en procesos de reacción difusión, un acercamiento a la biología del crecimiento / Growth effect in diffusion reaction processes, an approach to growth biology

El comportamiento de las ecuaciones de reacción-difusión ha sido estudiado en diversos campos de la biología, la bioingeniería y la química, entre otras. En especial, cuando los parámetros del sistema de reacción-difusión se encuentran en el espacio de Turing, la solución lleva a la formación de patrones de Turing que son estables en el tiempo e inestables en el espacio. Estos patrones pueden modificarse gracias a la acción del crecimiento del dominio donde se desarrolla la reacción. En este artículo se plantea, de forma general, las ecuaciones de reacción-difusión sobre dominios crecientes en 2D y 3D. Además, para estudiar el efecto del crecimiento sobre la formación de patrones se resuelven varios ejemplos numéricos sobre diferentes geometrías. Para la solución numérica se utilizó el método de los elementos finitos en conjunto con el método de Newton-Raphson para la aproximación de las ecuaciones diferenciales parciales no lineales. Se encontró que el crecimiento afecta la formación de patrones de Turing generando estructuras complejas en el dominio

The behavior of reaction-diffusion equations has been studied in different fields of biology, bioengineering and chemistry, among others. Interestingly, when the parameters of reaction-diffusion system are placed in the Turing's space, solution leads to formation of Turing's patterns remaining stable in time and unstable in space. These patterns may be modified due to action of growth of domain where reaction is developed. The objective of present paper is to propose in general, the reaction-diffusion equations over the growing domains in 2D and 3D. Also, to study the growth effect on the patterns formation some numerical examples on different geometries must to be solved. For numerical solution we used the finite elements method together with the Newton-Raphson method to approach of the partial no-linear differential equations. It was noted that the growth to affect the Turing's patterns formation generating complex structures in the domain

Inteligência artificial e pensamento: redefinindo os parâmetros da questão primordial de Turing / Artificial intelligence and thinking: redefining parameters of Turing's primordial question

A primeira parte do ensaio apresenta as idéias fundamentais de Turing que contribuíram para o desenvolvimento da ciência cognitiva. Assume-se que, embora tenha apresentado uma definição operacional de pensamento, Turing não consegue escapar do antropocentrismo, já que o teste baseado no jogo da imitação tem como parâmetro o ser humano. Consequentemente, o objetivo da ciência cognitiva influenciada por Turing passou a ser o de formalizar o pensamento humano. A possibilidade dessa tarefa é analisada na segunda parte do ensaio, na qual também são apresentadas as principais características do processo de raciocínio humano. O resultado dessa análise sugere que a formalização do pensamento humano em máquinas é uma tarefa muito difícil, senão impossível. Ressalta-se, todavia, que desse resultado não implica a negação da proposta de Turing. É preciso apenas redefinir os parâmetros de seu teste. (AU)

The first part of the essay presents Turing's fundamental ideas that contributed to development of cognitive science. Since the test based on imitation game has the human being as parameter, it is assumed that, despite his operational definition of thinking, Turing doesn't escape from anthropocentrism. Therefore, formalize human thinking has become the goal of cognitive science influenced by Turing. The possibility of this task is analyzed in the second part of the article, where are also presented the principal characteristics of reasoning in human. The result of this analysis suggests that the formalization of human thinking in machines is a very difficult task, if not an impossible one. However, this result doesn't imply the invalidation of Turing's proposal. Redefining parameters of his test is just what is needed.(AU)

Detección y eliminación del sujeto en la lógica matemática / Detection and removal of subject’s effect in mathematical logic

Leibniz vaticinó un lenguaje matemático perfecto y completo. Ese sueño parecía realizable a fines del siglo XIX, cuando la teoría de los conjuntos de Cantor proporcionaba un lenguaje suficientemente potente como para enunciar todos los teoremas de la matemática. Sin embargo, algunas ambigüedades lógicas o paradojas fueron descubiertas en los sistemas lógico-formales que se basaban en ese lenguaje. Persiguiendo una fundación lógica asegurada de la matemática, varios intentos rigurosos de eliminarlas fueron realizados durante las tres primeras décadas del siglo XX. Los principales teoremas de Gõdel, Church y Turing establecieron las limitaciones de tales esfuerzos, al demostrar que el ‘double sens’ no es jamás eliminable de los lenguajes formales que incluyen la aritmética. Como resultado colateral de esa vasta investigación, una nueva clase de lenguajes fue descubierto, la máquina de Turing, que emplea solamente números computables. Este artículo proporciona una interpretación psicoanalítica de los principales resultados de Cantor, Gõdel y Turing, basada en la definición lacaniana del efecto de sujeto del lenguaje, y la necesidad de la lógica matemática de excluir tal efecto. La enorme importancia del descubrimiento de la máquina de Turing – que hizo posible la era Internet – resulta del hecho de que tal máquina lógica está libre de tal efecto. Ella es, por definición, máquina automática, no elige. Sin embargo, ella tiene consecuencias sobre el sujeto que la desea, la programa, y con ella funda una nueva etapa en la civilización. La aventura de estos autores no fue gratuita.