Editing Autocatalytic set (section)

==Non-autonomous autocatalytic sets==

Virtually all articles on autocatalytic sets leave open whether the sets are
to be considered autonomous or not. Often, autonomy of the sets is silently
assumed.

Likely, the above context has a strong emphasis on autonomous self replication
and early origin of life. But the concept of autocatalytic sets is really more general and
in practical use in various technical areas, e.g. where self-sustaining tool chains are
handled. Clearly, such sets are not autonomous and are objects of human agency.

Examples of practical importance of non-autonomous autocatalytic sets can be found e.g. in the field of [[Bootstrapping (compilers)|compiler construction]] and in [[Self-hosting (compilers)|operating systems]], where the self-referential nature of the respective constructions is explicitly discussed, very often as [[bootstrapping]].