Papers by Kazuhiko Kotani
Open Journal of Philosophy, 2019
We shall consider the relationship between life and entropy from the viewpoint of information. Fi... more We shall consider the relationship between life and entropy from the viewpoint of information. Firstly, as long as life is alive, it tries to keep the order of its body. In contrast, inanimate materials quickly become in equilibrium. Life seems to have a special nature. However, since life is an open system, the maintenance of the order of the living body does not conflict with the second law of thermodynamics. Living life maintains its order using information and energy from the outer world. Secondly, due to the second law of thermodynamics, it is impossible to preserve information permanently. How can living organisms preserve such information? The key feature of living organisms is that there are two phases: life and death. Natural selection uses both life and death. When life is alive, life proliferates and retains genetic information. When life dies, its body is rapidly degraded and genetic information is lost. Both of them increase the number of advantageous genes for survival and eliminate disadvantageous genes for survival. In conclusion, it was confirmed that neither the maintenance of order in living body using information and energy nor the preservation of information by natural selection is inconsistent with the second law of thermodynamics.
Open Journal of Philosophy, 2017
What is number? This question is difficult to answer. Because the number is one of the most basic... more What is number? This question is difficult to answer. Because the number is one of the most basic concepts, it is difficult to define the natural number with other concepts. Still, this problem is worth trying to answer. Now, everything is digitized and processed on computer. The importance of the number is increasing day by day. Now is time to consider what number is. Throughout the history of humankind, the ancient Greeks considered this question most profoundly. In particular, Plato defined the natural number one. The natural number one is equal, invariable and indivisible. These properties are intuitively acceptable. However, we have never seen or touched the natural number one itself. How can we know it? Socrates said that we know it before birth. This claim is called anamnesis. In this paper, we use a method, in which Socrates' anamnesis is studied by the contemporary science. From a modern viewpoint, we could take Socrates' anamnesis to mean that the natural number one is written in our genes. This article considers whether there is a biological entity corresponding to the natural number one. As a result, we find that a life itself is the prototype of the natural number one, and then properties of life make a critical base of DNA similar to the natural number one through natural selection. A life is an integrated and indivisible system, which resists the law of entropy. Furthermore, the basic properties of life enable natural selection, which conserves genetic information despite the law of entropy. The source of the power, which enables life to resist the law of entropy, is the genetic information. In conclusion, a life is a prototype of the natural number one. Furthermore, a life recognizes nature using natural numbers and resists the law of entropy using natural numbers.
Open Journal of Philosophy, 2020
Geometry is based on vision. Hence, the visual information processing of the nervous system regul... more Geometry is based on vision. Hence, the visual information processing of the nervous system regulates the structure of geometry. In this paper, we shall construct geometry following the process of visual information processing in the nervous system. Firstly, photons are captured by photoreceptor cells in the retina. At this stage, the retinal bitmap image is constructed using photoreceptor cells as pixels. The retinal bitmap is the foundation of quantitative properties of images throughout the visual processing. Secondly, the edge of the object is extracted in the primary visual cortex. When a three-dimensional object is projected in two dimensions, the edge of the object is ideally a line without width. While Euclid defined the line as the length without width. Surprisingly, a type of cells in the primary visual cortex react the Euclidean line. At this stage, Euclidean geometry without curves is constructed. Thirdly, curves are recognized in the visual area V4. At this stage, Euclidean geometry with curves is constructed. The next problem is the compatibility of these stages. The problem of the compatibility between the first and second stages is that there are irrational lengths in Euclidean geometry. Ancient Greeks used the double contradiction to solve the compatibility problem. An irrational number is defined as a number that divides rational numbers into larger and smaller rational numbers. The double contradiction is a method of defining non-rational numbers using rational numbers. Also, double contradiction is used to solve the compatibility problem between the second and third stages. Even though the length of the curve is not defined in Elements, the length of a curve can be defined by the length of straight lines. Similarly, properties of curves are defined by straight lines. In differentiation, the slope of the curve is defined by the slope of the line. In integration, the area under the curve is defined by the total area of thin rectangles. Finally, as a logical basis for calculus, the double contradiction should be rethought.
Open Journal of Philosophy, 2016
The derivative is a basic concept of differential calculus. However, if we calculate the derivati... more The derivative is a basic concept of differential calculus. However, if we calculate the derivative as change in distance over change in time, the result at any instant is 0/0, which seems meaningless. Hence, Newton and Leibniz used the limit to determine the derivative. Their method is valid in practice, but it is not easy to intuitively accept. Thus, this article describes the novel method of differential calculus based on the double contradiction, which is easier to accept intuitively. Next, the geometrical meaning of the double contradiction is considered as follows. A tangent at a point on a convex curve is iterated. Then, the slope of the tangent at the point is sandwiched by two kinds of lines. The first kind of line crosses the curve at the original point and a point to the right of it. The second kind of line crosses the curve at the original point and a point to the left of it. Then, the double contradiction can be applied, and the slope of the tangent is determined as a single value. Finally, the meaning of this method for the foundation of mathematics is considered. We reflect on Dehaene's notion that the foundation of mathematics is based on the intuitions, which evolve independently. Hence, there may be gaps between intuitions. In fact, the Ancient Greeks identified inconsistency between arithmetic and geometry. However, Eudoxus developed the theory of proportion, which is equivalent to the Dedekind Cut. This allows the iteration of an irrational number by rational numbers as precisely as desired. Simultaneously, we can define the irrational number by the double contradiction, although its existence is not guaranteed. Further, an area of a curved figure is iterated and defined by rectilinear figures using the double contradiction.
Open Journal of Philosophy, 2016
The diagonal argument is a very famous proof, which has influenced many areas of mathematics. How... more The diagonal argument is a very famous proof, which has influenced many areas of mathematics. However, this paper shows that the diagonal argument cannot be applied to the sequence of potentially infinite number of potentially infinite binary fractions. First, the original form of Cantor's diagonal argument is introduced. Second, it is demonstrated that any natural number is finite, by a simple mathematical induction. Third, the concept of potential infinity, created by Aristotle, is presented. Typically, the natural numbers are considered potentially infinite. However, although any natural number is finite, there is also no limit to how large a natural number can be. Fourth, the concept of the potentially infinite decimal is introduced. Fifth, it is easily proven that the diagonal argument cannot be applied to the sequence of all n-bit binary fractions in the interval [0,1). Finally, the diagonal argument is shown to be inapplicable to the sequence of the potentially infinite number of potentially infinite binary fractions, which contains all n-bit binary fractions in the interval [0,1) for any n.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 2006
A sensitive and specific method for determining three forms of methylarginine, i.e., NG-monomethy... more A sensitive and specific method for determining three forms of methylarginine, i.e., NG-monomethylarginine, P,P-dimethylarginine, and NG,NG-dimethylarginine, in mammalian tissues was developed. After paiiial purification by ion-exchange chromatography, the methylarginines were derivatized to phenylthiocarbamyl compounds and quantitatively determined using HPLC with a reverse-phase CIS column. In rat organs, the highest concentrations of methylarginines were observed in the spleen. In rat brain, cerebellum and olfactory bulb contained large amounts of P-monomethylarginine and NG,P-dimethylarginine. A detailed study of the distribution of methylarginines in the bovine brain was also made, and the concentration of NG,NG-dimethylarginine was almost the same in all regions. The cerebellar gray matter, hippocampus, and hypothalamus contained large amounts of methylarginines. The distribution of methylarginines seems to parallel the distribution of nitric oxide synthase, which is known to be inhibited by NG-monomethylarginine. This may indicate that methylarginines play some role in controlling nitric oxide synthase activity.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 1992
Methylarginines in free form were identified in bovine brain. Three compounds were isolated from ... more Methylarginines in free form were identified in bovine brain. Three compounds were isolated from the basic aliphatic amino acid fraction of bovine brain with several ion-exchange chromatographies. They showed the same Rf values in paper and thin-layer chromatographies as those of authentic NG-monomethylarginine, p,p-dimethylarginine, and @,N'G-dimethylarginine. The migration distance of the isolated compounds in high-voltage paper electrophoresis and the retention times in ion-exchange HPLC were also identical to those of the above authentic methylarginines. We concluded that these three compounds are the methyl derivatives of arginine described above. The amount of these three compounds isolated from 1,090 g of bovine brain was 0.3 pmol of p-monomethylarginine, 0.1 pmol of NG,NGdimethylarginine, and 0.5 pmol of pJ"'-dimethylarginine. The occurrence of these free methylarginines may have an important role in regulating the signal transduction through the nitric oxide system.
Distribution of ?-(?-Aminobutyryl)-Hypusine
Journal of Neurochemistry, 1987
ABSTRACT
Journal of Neurochemistry, 1986
A new dipeptide, a-(y-aminobutyry1)-hypusine, was identified in bovine brain. This compound was i... more A new dipeptide, a-(y-aminobutyry1)-hypusine, was identified in bovine brain. This compound was isolated from trichloroacetic acid-soluble fraction of bovine brain with five steps of ion-exchange chromatography. Its structure was postulated by routine chemical analyses and determined by synthesis. The amount of the compound isolated from 1.2 kg of bovine brain was 870 nmol. Key Words: a-(y-Aminobutyry1)-hypusine-y- Aminobutyric acid-Hypusine. Sano A. et al. Isolation and identification of a-(y-aminobutyry1)-hypusine. J . Neurochem. 46, 1046Neurochem. 46, -1049Neurochem. 46, (1986)). The amino acids and peptides separated with the ion-
Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 1995
Isolation and identification of α-(β-alanyl)hypusine from bovine brain
Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects, 1991
Abstract A unique dipeptide was isolated from bovine brain using five steps of ion-exchange chrom... more Abstract A unique dipeptide was isolated from bovine brain using five steps of ion-exchange chromatography. Its acid hydrolysate contained equimolar amounts of β-alanine and hypusine. The structure of the peptide was elucidated as α-(β-alanyl)hypusine using dansylation technique. About 1 μmol of the compound was isolated from 1090 g of bovine brain.
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Papers by Kazuhiko Kotani