arXiv version here:
arxiv.org/abs/2503.15670

Published: Noise equals control.

I detail an explicit mapping between stochastic systems and control theory, showing how goal-directed behaviour arises from purely causal stochastic systems. Illustrated with stochastic resonance & Brownian ratchets
journals.aps.org/pre/abstract...

Depends on what synthesis you consider crucial but we found this paper useful:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33672143/

The arXiv preprint is updated to a full-length article (10 pages + 7 pages SI).

I will be around at StatPhys and Molveno if you want to chat!
( I am giving a talk about random languages in a ML session )

The talk is based on my recent preprint
arxiv.org/abs/2503.15670
written in an abbreviated manner for theoretical physicists. I am expanding the preprint to full article length and will update the arXiv soon.

In the talk I explain it all in simple language, and reinterpret stochastic resonance & Brownian ratchets with the noise-control mapping.

It also solves a conceptual problem in the field theory of stochastic systems, which is the physical interpretation of the `momentum' field that is introduced as a Lagrange multiplier, or via other abstract methods. The field is a control strategy. Agency is part of Nature

This solves the conceptual `agency-body' problem of dualism, i.e. reconciling a mechanistic description of biology with an agential one

My talk from
@bioctrl.bsky.social
about the physical origin of agency is uploaded here:
youtube.com/watch?v=YY21...
TLDR: noise equals control. Nature is constantly sampling control trajectories via noise

@philipcball.bsky.social potentially of interest! This result is very aligned with your perspective, I believe

I'm very excited about this virtual talk, tomorrow at 11am ET, and open to everyone! I will explain precisely how and why agency is part of Nature, and illustrate the idea with some examples from biology and beyond. No complex mathematics.