Perspectives on Organisms : Biological time, Symmetries and Singularities / by Giuseppe Longo, Maël Montévil.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Longo, G. (Giuseppe), author.

Montévil, Maël, author.

Contributor:

SpringerLink (Online service)

Series:

Lecture notes in morphogenesis 2195-1934

Lecture Notes in Morphogenesis, 2195-1934

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Life sciences.

Biological models.

Developmental biology.

Physical Description:

1 online resource : illustration.

Contained In:

Springer eBooks

Place of Publication:

Berlin, Heidelberg : Springer Berlin Heidelberg : Imprint: Springer, 2014.

System Details:

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

text file PDF

Summary:

This authored monograph introduces a genuinely theoretical approach to biology. Starting point is the investigation of empirical biological scaling including their variability, which is found in the literature, e.g. allometric relationships, fractals, etc. The book then analyzes two different aspects of biological time: first, a supplementary temporal dimension to accommodate proper biological rhythms; secondly, the concepts of protension and retention as a means of local organization of time in living organisms. Moreover, the book investigates the role of symmetry in biology, in view of its ubiquitous importance in physics. In relation with the notion of extended critical transitions, the book proposes that organisms and their evolution can be characterized by continued symmetry changes, which accounts for the irreducibility of their historicity and variability. The authors also introduce the concept of anti-entropy as a measure for the potential of variability, being equally understood as alterations in symmetry. By this, the book provides a mathematical account of Gould's analysis of phenotypic complexity with respect to biological evolution. The target audience primarily comprises researchers interested in new theoretical approaches to biology, from physical, biological or philosophical backgrounds, but the book may also be beneficial for graduate students who want to enter this field.

Contents:

Introduction

Scaling and scale symmetries in biological systems

A 2-dimensional geometry for biological time

Protention and retention in biological systems

Symmetry and symmetry breakings in physics

Critical phase transitions

From physics to biology by extending criticality and symmetry Breakings

Biological phase spaces and enablement

Biological order as a consequence of randomness: Anti-entropy and symmetry changes

A philosophical survey on how we moved from Physics to Biology.

Other Format:

Printed edition:

ISBN:

9783642359385

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.