Wonderful Reading Subject You Can't Ignore.
Just Read It ! 

Check this book out 

A Zeptospace Odyssey 

There is a table in this book similar to the periodic table of elements we all know from chemistry. It is a periodic table of elementary particles . There is a gap-like space in that table much like the gap which was in the periodic table of elements before many new elements were discovered.
You could easily expect the gap to be the place of some undiscovered elementary particles which are force carriers of another yet undiscovered force ; i.e. The Force Of Life !

Read the book and check the table for yourself .
You won't regret.

Through The Wormhole . Is The Universe Alive !

Recently in a series called "Through The Wormhole" hosted by Morgan Freeman, there was an episode called "Is The Universe Alive?"  -Season 3 Episode 3
Check it out and find out for yourself ! 

Basic Definition

As a general rule :"Anything that moves is ALIVE."
Movement here is applied in its broadest sense.
1- Heat is a kind of movement(in fact measuring heat is measuring the average movement of particles in a given medium)

2- Music is transmitted vibration

3- String theory says that when strings vibrate with different frequencies different kind of matter is represented.

4- In our world as we know it even in something cold and hard as stone, there are electrons orbiting the nucleus at amazing speed.

Anything that moves is ALIVE
So we can add "THE FORCE OF LIFE" at the moment of big bang to other forces in action and it explains some difficult mysteries of our universe. As you can see , laws of economics and evolution; alongside with chaos theory and even thermodynamics are in fact explaining different aspects of the fundamental force of life as it affects things directly.
According to this , we have a very reasonable definition of life to resolve many unfruitful debates over what is life and by the way we have a very wonderful and precise model of explaining the universe "AS IT IS" .

Life Is A Force Of Nature

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_interaction

I am to introduce another (fifth) fundamental force of nature.
It is called life.

Until recently four fundamental forces were described:

1- Gravity
2-Electromagnetism
3-Strong nuclear force
4-Weak nuclear force

Life is stranger than gravity.
We can see faces of this force in its outside manifestations ; e.g. laws of economy and laws of evolution ; that are independent players of the game.