Minimal Temporal and Energetic Thresholds of Life A Non-Anthropocentric Criterion Based on Cycles of Self-Maintenance

Minimal Temporal and Energetic Thresholds of Life Toward a Non-Anthropocentric Definition of Living Persistence Author: Frédéric Tabary Date: February 2026 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18471362 Description This white paper addresses one of the most persistent open questions in contemporary science: the definition of the minimal conditions under which life can exist. While physics, chemistry, and biology converge on a set of necessary conditions for life — open systems, non-zero free energy flux, operation far from thermodynamic equilibrium — none of these disciplines currently provides a closed criterion defining the minimal temporal or energetic threshold at which a system can be considered alive. As a result, the boundary between transient phenomena and living persistence remains descriptive rather than formal. This work proposes a non-anthropocentric approach to the problem. Life is not defined by duration measured in conventional time units, nor by structure, complexity, or biological markers. Instead, life is defined as a process: the ability of a system to persist by actively counteracting dissipation. The central proposal is simple and strict. A system is minimally alive if and only if it completes at least one full cycle of active self-maintenance against dissipation. A system that merely appears and disappears is an event. A system that demonstrates resistance to dissolution by correcting perturbations and restoring its internal coherence has lived, even if only briefly. This definition introduces a minimal temporal threshold, but that threshold is not absolute. It is relative to the duration of a self-maintenance cycle, which is intrinsic to the system itself. Slow systems require long absolute durations to complete a cycle. Fast systems may complete a cycle in extremely short absolute times. Both can satisfy the same minimal criterion without contradiction. The temporal threshold is inseparable from an energetic one. To complete a cycle of self-maintenance, a system must access a non-zero flux of free energy sufficient to compensate dissipation and prevent loss of organization-relevant information. This establishes a lower bound of energetic sufficiency that can be expressed as an inequality rather than a universal constant. No specific energy source is privileged, and no numerical threshold is imposed independently of the system. Importantly, this framework introduces no new physical law and violates none of the established ones. It is fully compatible with thermodynamics, statistical physics, and information theory. Its contribution is conceptual: it transforms known necessary conditions into a minimal sufficient threshold by explicitly coupling time, energy, and coherence. By doing so, the paper goes beyond the current state of the art. Contemporary definitions of life list properties or behaviors, but do not close the question of minimal sufficiency. The criterion proposed here provides a closed, operational, and simulation-ready boundary between non-living events and living persistence. This approach removes anthropocentric bias by avoiding references to biology-specific traits such as reproduction, genetic material, or morphology. It applies equally to biological systems, artificial systems, and hypothetical living processes. It also enables testing through digital twins, where the presence or absence of self-maintenance cycles can be evaluated under controlled energetic and dissipative conditions. The broader implication is methodological. Life is not identified by how long a system exists, but by whether it has demonstrated the capacity to maintain itself at least once. Duration without maintenance is irrelevant. Maintenance without sufficient duration is impossible. The minimal threshold of life therefore emerges as relational, energetic, and coherent rather than absolute. This work proposes a conceptual closure, not an empirical prediction. It provides a rigorous, non-anthropocentric criterion that clarifies where life begins, without narrowing the diversity of forms life may take.