Innovation, Variation, and Emergence in an Automata Chemistry

Open-ended novelty is one of the goals of ALife. We use a recent definition of open-endedness, stated in terms of system models and meta-models, to demonstrate how the Stringmol Automata Chemistry achieves variation, innovation and emergence in a replicator-parasite system. We also show how Stringmol's self-modifying code allows certain of these novelties to be exploited within the system itself, while others are only externally observed.