The third phase of The Nexus Theory (TNT) is “connection.” Once nexuses gain the capacity to react in different ways via variation, they can form new connections that were previously impossible. This cycle of connection continues to build on itself, as every time two different nexuses connect, their newly resultant form is added to the total possible configurations in a system.
Evidence
Phase three is best represented by the continued expansion of total possible elemental configurations via connectivity. Carbon is perhaps the best example.
Carbon is a remarkable element. It possesses a versatile ability to form strong and stable bonds with both itself and other elements. In fact, all life on Earth is built on a carbon infrastructure, which is why the phrase “carbon-based life” is used to describe organisms on our planet. Carbon’s remarkable versatility arises from it’s “tetravalency,” meaning it has four electrons available to form bonds with neighboring atoms, including other carbon atoms. This bonding ability can form chains of carbon and other elements known as “carbon compounds.” At close to ten million known carbon compounds, carbon has a greater ability to form connections than any other element in the Universe. The study of these connections is known as “organic chemistry.”
Of the millions of possible carbon compounds arise many new configurations of matter – monomers, polymers, nucleic acids (RNA & DNA), proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, etc. The list goes on. All of these new configurations of matter are the direct result of carbon’s ability to form connections in ways other elements can’t.
There are other elements with similar properties to carbon that might be candidates to form life in other environments, such as silicon (which is also tetravalent), but silicon tends to form crystal lattices instead of chains, which are unfortunately not as reversible and thus less suitable for biological processes.
Thus, connection (carbon, in our case) acts as a catalyst to add exponentially to the variation of the Universe.