From machine and tape to structure and function: formulation of a reflexively computing system

Self-description for construction and computation on graph-rewriting automata

This article shows how self-description can be realized for construction and computation in a single framework of a variant of graph-rewriting systems called graph-rewriting automata. Graph-rewriting automata define symbol dynamics on graphs, in contrast to cellular automata on lattice space. Structural change is possible along with state transition. Self-replication based on a self-description is shown as an example of self-description for construction. This process is performed using a construction arm, which is realized as a subgraph, that executes a program described in the graph structure. In addition, a metanode structure is introduced to embed rule sets in the graph structure as self-description for computation. These are regarded as universal graph-rewriting automata that can serve as a model of systems that maintain themselves through replication and modification.

A graph-based reflexive artificial chemistry

The conceptual divide between formal systems of computation and abstract models of chemistry is considered. As an attempt to concretely bridge this divide, a formalism is proposed that describes a constructive artificial chemistry on a space of directed graph structures. The idea for the formalism originates in computer science theory, with the traditional abstraction of a physical machine, the finite-state machine (FSM). In the FSM, the machine (state-transition graph) and input string (series of binary digits) are fundamentally distinct objects, separated by nature of the underlying formalism. This distinction is dissolved in the proposed system, resulting in a construction process that is reflexive: graphs interact with their own topological structure to generate a product. It is argued that this property of reflexivity is a key element missing from earlier model chemistries. Examples demonstrate the continuous emergence complex self-similar topologies, novel reaction pathways, and seemingly open-ended diversity. Implications of these findings are discussed.