In the summer of 2013, the book Biological Information – New Perspectives was published The book includes the proceedings of a symposium of the same name, which was held at Cornell University in the spring of 2011. What is the significance of this symposium and its proceedings? More importantly, what is the significance of biological information itself?
The proceedings include the research findings of 29 scientists who represent a diverse spectrum of scientific disciplines, including information theory, computer science, numerical simulation, thermodynamics, evolutionary theory, whole organism biology, developmental biology, molecular biology, genetics, physics, biophysics, mathematics, and linguistics. These scientists generally agreed on three crucial points:
1. Information is the key to understanding life. Within the simplest cell there exists an immense flow of information through a mind-boggling system of information networks. There is constant and multidirectional communication between proteins, RNAs, and DNAs, and these biological information networks are in many ways comparable to the internet.
2. These biological information systems appear to greatly surpass human information technologies. Such information systems cannot possibly operate until all the countless components of the system are in place - including hardware, software, multiple languages, storage/transmission of communicable prescriptive information units, error testing/correction systems, designated senders/receivers, etc. Such systems must be comprehensive and coherently integrated before they can effectively operate. .
3. The enormous amounts of information found within any cell, and the irreducibly complex nature of information systems, can no longer rationally be attributed to just the mutation/selection process. New perspectives are needed that might help us better understand the nature, origin, and maintenance of biological information.
2013年夏天出版了《生物信息——新视角》一书，书中收录了2011年春季在康奈尔大学举行的同名研讨会的论文集。这次研讨会的意义和论文集是什么？ ?更重要的是，生物信息本身的意义何在？
会议记录包括 29 位科学家的研究成果，他们代表了不同的科学学科，包括信息论、计算机科学、数值模拟、热力学、进化论、整个有机体生物学、发育生物学、分子生物学、遗传学、物理学、生物物理学、数学, 和语言学。这些科学家普遍同意三个关键点：
1.信息是理解生活的关键。在最简单的细胞中，存在着巨大的信息流，通过令人难以置信的信息网络系统。蛋白质、RNA 和 DNA 之间存在持续的多向通信，这些生物信息网络在许多方面都可以与互联网相媲美。
2. 这些生物信息系统似乎大大超越了人类信息技术。在系统的所有无数组件都到位之前，此类信息系统可能无法运行 - 包括硬件、软件、多种语言、可通信规范信息单元的存储/传输、错误测试/纠正系统、指定的发送者/接收者等。此类系统必须全面和连贯地整合，才能有效运作。 .
3. 在任何细胞中发现的大量信息，以及信息系统不可简化的复杂性，不能再合理地归因于突变/选择过程。需要新的视角来帮助我们更好地理解生物信息的性质、起源和维护。
Biological Information – New Perspectives brings into serious question the long held neo-Darwinian paradigm, which has claimed for over a century that mutation/selection can explain all aspects of the biological realm. In light of the new evidence presented
3
in Biological Information – New Perspectives, it is necessary that biologists begin to re-examine neo-Darwinian theory.
A major limitation of this book is that its papers are so technical that most readers will not be able to readily absorb them. The book contains 24 high-level, rigorous, and usually exhaustive scientific research papers, written by experts in a wide range of scientific disciplines. For this reason each of the book’s chapters (papers) tends to be too long and too technical for most non-specialists to absorb. Indeed, the average college professor may have considerable trouble understanding many of these papers which fall outside of his/her area of specialization. In order to make the information in the book more generally accessible, I have written my own view of the highlights of the book and its general significance. This synopsis attempts to boil down and briefly summarize each paper’s highlights – using less technical language. I hope this synopsis will help non-specialists appreciate the significance of these authors’ exciting new findings.
Because the authors contributing to this work were requested to avoid any lengthy philosophical discourse, the broader implications of the authors’ findings were usually left un-spoken. For this reason, I attempt to capture the take-home message of each paper. In some instances I will doubtless miss the mark, and in these cases I apologize in advance. Additionally, in this synopsis I take the liberty of adding a limited amount of personal commentary.
生物信息——新观点对长期持有的新达尔文范式提出了严重质疑，该范式在一个多世纪以来一直声称突变/选择可以解释生物领域的所有方面。鉴于提出的新证据
3
在生物信息——新观点中，生物学家有必要开始重新审视新达尔文理论。
这本书的一个主要限制是它的论文技术性很强，以至于大多数读者无法轻易吸收它们。这本书包含 24 篇高水平、严谨且通常详尽的科学研究论文，由广泛科学学科的专家撰写。出于这个原因，本书的每一章（论文）往往太长且技术性太强，以至于大多数非专业人士无法吸收。事实上，普通大学教授可能很难理解其中许多不属于他/她的专业领域的论文。为了使书中的信息更容易获得，我写了我自己对本书亮点及其一般意义的看法。本概要试图归结并简要总结每篇论文的亮点——使用较少的技术语言。我希望这份概要能帮助非专业人士了解这些作者令人兴奋的新发现的重要性。
由于要求对这项工作做出贡献的作者避免任何冗长的哲学论述，因此作者发现的更广泛的影响通常没有说出来。出于这个原因，我试图捕捉每篇论文的关键信息。在某些情况下，我无疑会错过目标，在这些情况下，我会提前道歉。此外，在这个概要中，我冒昧地添加了有限数量的个人评论。
The proceedings include the research findings of 29 scientists who represent a diverse spectrum of scientific disciplines, including information theory, computer science, numerical simulation, thermodynamics, evolutionary theory, whole organism biology, developmental biology, molecular biology, genetics, physics, biophysics, mathematics, and linguistics. These scientists generally agreed on three crucial points:
1. Information is the key to understanding life. Within the simplest cell there exists an immense flow of information through a mind-boggling system of information networks. There is constant and multidirectional communication between proteins, RNAs, and DNAs, and these biological information networks are in many ways comparable to the internet.
2. These biological information systems appear to greatly surpass human information technologies. Such information systems cannot possibly operate until all the countless components of the system are in place - including hardware, software, multiple languages, storage/transmission of communicable prescriptive information units, error testing/correction systems, designated senders/receivers, etc. Such systems must be comprehensive and coherently integrated before they can effectively operate. .
3. The enormous amounts of information found within any cell, and the irreducibly complex nature of information systems, can no longer rationally be attributed to just the mutation/selection process. New perspectives are needed that might help us better understand the nature, origin, and maintenance of biological information.
2013年夏天出版了《生物信息——新视角》一书，书中收录了2011年春季在康奈尔大学举行的同名研讨会的论文集。这次研讨会的意义和论文集是什么？ ?更重要的是，生物信息本身的意义何在？
会议记录包括 29 位科学家的研究成果，他们代表了不同的科学学科，包括信息论、计算机科学、数值模拟、热力学、进化论、整个有机体生物学、发育生物学、分子生物学、遗传学、物理学、生物物理学、数学, 和语言学。这些科学家普遍同意三个关键点：
1.信息是理解生活的关键。在最简单的细胞中，存在着巨大的信息流，通过令人难以置信的信息网络系统。蛋白质、RNA 和 DNA 之间存在持续的多向通信，这些生物信息网络在许多方面都可以与互联网相媲美。
2. 这些生物信息系统似乎大大超越了人类信息技术。在系统的所有无数组件都到位之前，此类信息系统可能无法运行 - 包括硬件、软件、多种语言、可通信规范信息单元的存储/传输、错误测试/纠正系统、指定的发送者/接收者等。此类系统必须全面和连贯地整合，才能有效运作。 .
3. 在任何细胞中发现的大量信息，以及信息系统不可简化的复杂性，不能再合理地归因于突变/选择过程。需要新的视角来帮助我们更好地理解生物信息的性质、起源和维护。
Biological Information – New Perspectives brings into serious question the long held neo-Darwinian paradigm, which has claimed for over a century that mutation/selection can explain all aspects of the biological realm. In light of the new evidence presented
3
in Biological Information – New Perspectives, it is necessary that biologists begin to re-examine neo-Darwinian theory.
A major limitation of this book is that its papers are so technical that most readers will not be able to readily absorb them. The book contains 24 high-level, rigorous, and usually exhaustive scientific research papers, written by experts in a wide range of scientific disciplines. For this reason each of the book’s chapters (papers) tends to be too long and too technical for most non-specialists to absorb. Indeed, the average college professor may have considerable trouble understanding many of these papers which fall outside of his/her area of specialization. In order to make the information in the book more generally accessible, I have written my own view of the highlights of the book and its general significance. This synopsis attempts to boil down and briefly summarize each paper’s highlights – using less technical language. I hope this synopsis will help non-specialists appreciate the significance of these authors’ exciting new findings.
Because the authors contributing to this work were requested to avoid any lengthy philosophical discourse, the broader implications of the authors’ findings were usually left un-spoken. For this reason, I attempt to capture the take-home message of each paper. In some instances I will doubtless miss the mark, and in these cases I apologize in advance. Additionally, in this synopsis I take the liberty of adding a limited amount of personal commentary.
生物信息——新观点对长期持有的新达尔文范式提出了严重质疑，该范式在一个多世纪以来一直声称突变/选择可以解释生物领域的所有方面。鉴于提出的新证据
3
在生物信息——新观点中，生物学家有必要开始重新审视新达尔文理论。
这本书的一个主要限制是它的论文技术性很强，以至于大多数读者无法轻易吸收它们。这本书包含 24 篇高水平、严谨且通常详尽的科学研究论文，由广泛科学学科的专家撰写。出于这个原因，本书的每一章（论文）往往太长且技术性太强，以至于大多数非专业人士无法吸收。事实上，普通大学教授可能很难理解其中许多不属于他/她的专业领域的论文。为了使书中的信息更容易获得，我写了我自己对本书亮点及其一般意义的看法。本概要试图归结并简要总结每篇论文的亮点——使用较少的技术语言。我希望这份概要能帮助非专业人士了解这些作者令人兴奋的新发现的重要性。
由于要求对这项工作做出贡献的作者避免任何冗长的哲学论述，因此作者发现的更广泛的影响通常没有说出来。出于这个原因，我试图捕捉每篇论文的关键信息。在某些情况下，我无疑会错过目标，在这些情况下，我会提前道歉。此外，在这个概要中，我冒昧地添加了有限数量的个人评论。
