Beyond Life

By Olena Shmahalo

January 22, 2014

If a new theory is correct, the same physics it identifies as responsible for the origin of living things could explain the formation of many other patterned structures in nature. Snowflakes, sand dunes and self-replicating vortices in the protoplanetary disk may all be examples of dissipation-driven adaptation.
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Snowflake

Wilson Bentley

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