Anticipation in the Natural Sciences

Abstract

The chapter discusses anticipation in physics and biology. While physics comprises many situations in which present events appear to be determined by both past (initial) conditions and future (optimal) conditions, physical systems are reactive systems, not anticipatory ones. The information embedded in the hidden teleology of these systems is information that the system cannot use to change its behavior. On the other hand, biological systems require anticipation as one of their constitutive features. In biology anticipation has been studied both with reference to the actual behavior of specific types of organisms and as a step towards understanding life itself. The chapter presents a first exposition to selected forms of biological anticipation.