The Huddling Systems Model: The Emergence of Purpose From Chemistry to Consciousness Through Energy Thresholds

Purpose and life's origin are typically treated as separate problems—one philosophical, one empirical. This article reveals them as the same phenomenon at different energy scales. We trace purpose emergence from hydrothermal vent chemistry (~0.1 mmol ATP-equivalent/g/h) through protocells learning active work (1-10 mmol), bacterial robust self-maintenance (>10 mmol), to conscious human agency (>40-60 mmol + neural integration). Each threshold crossing represents organizational transition where new coordination modes become thermodynamically sustainable. The framework grounds subjective experience ("wanting to continue") in measurable physical conditions while acknowledging consciousness's mechanism remains mysterious. By recovering "information" as physical "in-formation" and inverting gene-centric paradigms (coordination built genes, not vice versa), we present purpose emergence as continuous thermodynamic gradient requiring no vitalism, teleology, or discontinuous leaps. For Article 1, see: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17297684 For Article 2, see: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17390117