We propose a general theorey of formally gradient differential
equations on unbounded one-dimensional domains, based on an
energy-flow inequality, and on the study of the induced
semiflow on the space of probability measures on the
phase space.
We prove that the $\omega$-limit set of each point contains
an equilibrium, and that the $\omega$-limit set of $\mu$-almost
every point in the phase space consists of equilibria,
where $\mu$ is any Borel probability measure invariant
for spatial translation.