Steady-state thermodynamics for population dynamics in fluctuating environments with side information

Abstract

Steady-state thermodynamics (SST) is a relatively newly emerging subfield of physics, which deals with transitions between steady states. In this paper, we find an SST-like structure in population dynamics of organisms that can sense their fluctuating environments. As heat is divided into two parts in SST, we decompose population growth into two parts: housekeeping growth and excess growth. Then, we derive the Clausius equality and inequality for excess growth. Using numerical simulations, we demonstrate how the Clausius inequality behaves depending on the magnitude of noise and strategies that organisms employ. Finally, we discuss the novelty of our findings and compare them with a previous study.