In animate thermodynamics, gentropy, a combination of the words genes and entropy, is loosely defined as the phenomenon of variability of the biosphere’s genetic system as a result of entropy processes. [1] The term seems to be a relatively new one coined in 1997 by authors V. K. Savchennko and U. K. Sauchanka. It is little used and stated mostly in analogy.
Savchennko and Sauchanka state that the the gentropy (entropically-related change in the genetic system of the biosphere, affecting its structure and function) caused by global contamination includes: (a) “increase in the mutation rate of the population of species inhabitation the biosphere, leading to a growth of the total number of mutations in the genosphere and to the intensification of the process of genetic entropy”; (b) “increase frequency of oncological diseases in human populations and in populations of animals and plant species, leading to the growth of oncogenic pressure on the biosphere”; (c) changes in the structure of the genetic systems of terrestrial and water organisms; and (d) a decrease in the general stability of the global genetic system due to the growth of genetic entropy processes and loss of the genetic material of animal and plant species, among other consequences. [2]
Architectural design
In 2001, American architect Scott Shaw, reports that ISPs, professional responsibility, and "negentropy" are concepts that architects put to work, almost as a byproduct of the search for a more streamlined design process. He states that architects facilitate connections with the community to get work and get work for those we respect. Shaw reasons that we facilitate "gentropy" by encouraging participation and team interaction through all phases of the design/construction process and that “it's all about making connections to the communities in which we work and live”. [3] The sense of the term gentropy used by Shaw, however, may not be of the same etymology as that used by Savchennko and Sauchanka.
See also
● Genopsych
References
1. Savchennko, V. K. and Sauchanka, U. K. (1997). The Genosphere: the Genetic System of the Biosphere, (pg. 4). Informa Healthcare.
2. ibid, pgs. 41-42.
3. Hobbs, Richard W. (2001). “Readers Report on Becoming Integrated Service Providers”, AIArchitect – Marketplace Research.
