What is it about?
DNA genomes carry information, but it is meaningless unless there is a cell from a matching living species that can interpret it. The main question concerning the origin of life is not where DNA information came from, but how molecular systems that act as interpreters spontaneously sprang into existence in association with DNA sequences and led to their selection. The evolution of genetic coding is a rich field for the investigation of this problem.
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Why is it important?
The public has been subjected to a misdirected propaganda campaign concerning the importance of DNA sequences and their evolution through natural selection, as if to consider other aspects of biology is to retreat into some discredited philosophy. As this paradigm collapses under the weight of evidence it is timely to consider alternatives by delving into the theoretical foundations of biology.
Perspectives
The close connection that the evolution of genetic coding establishes between DNA sequence information, functional proteins and the dynamics of complex systems is utterly fascinating and sheds new light on the character of the cosmos. The elegant simplicity of the first coding systems rivals the beauty which many people recognise in mathematical and physical principles.
Prof Peter R Wills
University of Auckland
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This page is a summary of: The generation of meaningful information in molecular systems, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences, February 2016, Royal Society Publishing,
DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2015.0066.
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