Abstract

The concept of information is widely used across physics, computer science, biology, and philosophy, yet it lacks a shared minimal definition that is independent of semantics, intentionality, or symbolic representation. As a result, information is often reified and treated as an additional ontological ingredient, leading to persistent conceptual confusions—most notably in discussions of abiogenesis, biological organization, and the relation between information and the second law of thermodynamics. This paper proposes a minimal operational definition of information grounded in physical dynamics. Information is defined as the existence of distinguishable states of a physical system whose differences lead to different causal consequences. On this basis, information is shown to be a relational property of non-trivial physical dynamics rather than an abstract entity or external addition to matter. The definition is developed formally and illustrated through simple physical and chemical examples, including selection processes and replication. The resulting framework dissolves the apparent tension between information, physical law, and thermodynamics. Information does not violate physical constraints, nor does it require appeal to intention, meaning, or design. Instead, it arises naturally wherever physical dynamics is not indifferent to differences. Later notions of information—quantitative, biological, or semantic—are shown to be higher-level extensions built upon this foundational condition.