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Published December 2011 | Published + Supplemental Material
Journal Article Open

Robust Monomer-Distribution Biosignatures in Evolving Digital Biota

Abstract

Because organisms synthesize component molecules at rates that reflect those molecules' adaptive utility, we expect a population of biota to leave a distinctive chemical signature on its environment that is anomalous given the local (abiotic) chemistry. We observe the same effect in the distribution of computer instructions used by an evolving population of digital organisms, and we characterize the robustness of the evolved signature with respect to a number of different changes in the system's physics. The observed instruction abundance anomaly has features that are consistent over a large number of evolutionary trials and alterations in system parameters, which makes it a candidate for a non-Earth-centric life diagnostic.

Additional Information

© 2011 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Submitted 28 September 2010. Accepted 1 September 2011. We would like to thank Ken Nealson for discussions and collaboration in an earlier phase of this research. This material is based in part upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Cooperative Agreements No.DEB-9981397 and No. DBI-0939454. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

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Published - Dorn2011p16878Astrobiology.pdf

Supplemental Material - Supp_Data.zip

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