What is it about?
“From the Meta-Vacuum to Consciousness – Informational Primacy and the Evolution of Reality’s Structures,” directly addresses the emergence and self-organization of complex systems through an information-theoretic lens, making it ideally suited to the Complex Physical Systems specialty of Frontiers in Physics. We develop a quantitative framework in which spontaneous symmetry breaking in a meta-vacuum gives rise to hierarchical information networks whose collective dynamics exhibit hallmark features of emergence—nonlinearity, scale invariance, and adaptive feedback. By bridging principles from statistical physics, nonlinear dynamics, and information theory, our work reveals how informational interactions can drive phase-transition-like behavior in abstract physical substrates, offering testable predictions for both laboratory analogues and cosmological scenarios. This interdisciplinary approach to emergent phenomena aligns with the journal’s focus on uncovering universal laws governing complex many‐body systems. Our results promise to engage researchers in statistical mechanics, network theory, and emergent dynamics, ensuring a rapid and constructive peer review by specialists familiar with the challenges and methodologies of complex physical systems.
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Why is it important?
Strategic and Economic Benefits: Access to lunar water and asteroid metals (e.g., platinum group elements) can dramatically lower mission costs by replacing Earth-launched propellant and supplies. This fosters new industries—robotic mining, off-Earth manufacturing, and fuel depots—that could be worth hundreds of billions per decade. Enabling Deep-Space Exploration: Sustainable human presence at Mars or beyond hinges on refueling hubs built with lunar or asteroid-derived propellant. Water-to-hydrogen/oxygen plants on the Moon could support crewed Mars missions and reduce Earth-dependency. Earth-Side Environmental Relief: Mining select rare metals in space could alleviate ecological damage caused by terrestrial mining. Concentrating heavy industries off-planet mitigates habitat destruction, water pollution, and carbon emissions on Earth.
Perspectives
Technological and Commercial Outlook: Private firms (e.g., Planetary Resources, Asteroid Mining Corp.) are developing prospecting missions and metal-separation tech. Advances in robotics, 3D printing, and high-efficiency solar power will drive costs down and boost reliability. Policy, Legal, and Ethical Considerations: The 1967 Outer Space Treaty forbids national appropriation but leaves private rights ambiguous. Nations like the U.S. and Luxembourg have passed laws granting companies rights to extracted materials—setting the stage for international negotiations on property, environmental stewardship, and benefit-sharing. International Cooperation and Sustainability: Global governance frameworks (e.g., UN COPUOS) must evolve to ensure equitable access, prevent “resource grab,” and protect celestial environments. Sustainable principles—such as avoiding harmful contamination and sharing data—will be key to a peaceful, prosperous space economy.
Serhii Kharchuk
Zhytomyr Polytechnic State University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: From the Meta-Vacuum to Consciousness: Informational Primacy and the Evolution of Reality's Structures, SSRN Electronic Journal, January 2025, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.5241300.
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