Fractal Biology — Evolution from Molecular to Cognitive, and Psychological Dimensions

Abstract

Biological and artificial intelligence (BI and AI) share the fundamental principles of space-time information processing based on symmetry transformation. Therefore, cognitive-science-inspired AI represents a promising area of exploration. A convincing example are the fractal structure of human languages and protein assembly. Biological processes’ temporal and spatial plasticity links them to basic laws of physics. Continuous advances in fundamental physical theories allow understanding of all aspects of space-time symmetry (STS) natively intertwined with the principle of relativity and causality. Spatial aspects of symmetry represented by three sub-domains such as chirality, fractality, and topology, are widely studied in biology. The role of chirality in biology has been analyzed in several recent reviews. However, the fractals and topological states of biological structures is a relatively new and fast-developing branch of science. Here, we trace publications exploring the role of fractal symmetry in all hierarchical states of biological organization, including at the molecular, cellular, morphological, physiological, perceptual, cognitive, and psychological levels. The coverage of the above-listed areas in current studies is sharply unequal and unsystematic. A broad view of biological fractality opens a unique opportunity to discriminate between a healthy state and a wide range of disease conditions. Psychiatric, neurological, and immune disorders are associated with aberrant molecular assembly and morphological changes in neural circuits, suggesting that the chain of chirality/fractality transfer through all levels of physiological organization deserves persistent attention.