Towards a Self-Replicating Turing Machine
This work addresses foundational challenges in theoretical computer science and artificial life, but it appears incremental as it builds on existing concepts like von Neumann's constructor.
The authors tackled the problem of constructing a self-replicating Turing machine by implementing partial versions of von Neumann's universal constructor and copier using simple building blocks, and they proposed a design that allows for mutations and includes a description language.
We provide partial implementations of von Neumann's universal constructor and universal copier, starting out with three types of simple building blocks using minimal assumptions. Using the same principles, we also construct Turing machines. Combining both, we arrive at a proposal for a self-replicating Turing machine. Our construction allows for mutations if desired, and we give a simple description language.