Abstract:
:Must higher level biological processes always be derivable from lower level data and mechanisms, as assumed by the idea that an organism is completely defined by its genome? Or are higher level properties necessarily also causes of lower level behaviour, involving actions and interactions both ways? This article uses modelling of the heart, and its experimental basis, to show that downward causation is necessary and that this form of causation can be represented as the influences of initial and boundary conditions on the solutions of the differential equations used to represent the lower level processes. These insights are then generalized. A priori, there is no privileged level of causation. The relations between this form of 'biological relativity' and forms of relativity in physics are discussed. Biological relativity can be seen as an extension of the relativity principle by avoiding the assumption that there is a privileged scale at which biological functions are determined.
journal_name
Interface Focusjournal_title
Interface focusauthors
Noble Ddoi
10.1098/rsfs.2011.0067subject
Has Abstractpub_date
2012-02-06 00:00:00pages
55-64issue
1eissn
2042-8898issn
2042-8901pii
rsfs20110067journal_volume
2pub_type
杂志文章相关文献
Interface Focus文献大全abstract::The development of bioadhesives inspired from marine animals is a promising approach to generate new tissue-compatible medical components. A number of marine species, through their adhesive properties, also represent significant foulers that become increasingly problematic to aquaculture, shipping or local biodiversit...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2014.0061
更新日期:2015-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::In this paper, we show that solutions to ordinary differential equations describing the large-population limits of Markovian stochastic epidemic models can be interpreted as survival or cumulative hazard functions when analysing data on individuals sampled from the population. We refer to the individual-level survival...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2019.0048
更新日期:2020-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::Owls are an order of birds of prey that are known for the development of a silent flight. We review here the morphological adaptations of owls leading to silent flight and discuss also aerodynamic properties of owl wings. We start with early observations (until 2005), and then turn to recent advances. The large wings ...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2016.0078
更新日期:2017-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::Despite there being many studies that have evaluated breast implant rupture, there is no consensus about causes and incidence. Most studies lack a multifactorial analysis of what causes breast implants to rupture. To fill this gap, an experimental protocol was developed to compare ruptured and intact Poly Implant Prot...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2018.0086
更新日期:2019-08-06 00:00:00
abstract::Multiscale simulations are essential in the biomedical domain to accurately model human physiology. We present a modular approach for designing, constructing and executing multiscale simulations on a wide range of resources, from laptops to petascale supercomputers, including combinations of these. Our work features t...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2012.0087
更新日期:2013-04-06 00:00:00
abstract::This paper proposes methods and technologies that advance the state of the art for modelling the musculoskeletal system across the spatial and temporal scales; and storing these using efficient ontologies and tools. We present population-based modelling as an efficient method to rapidly generate individual morphology ...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2015.0084
更新日期:2016-04-06 00:00:00
abstract::The scattering strength of a random medium relies on the geometry and spatial distribution of its components as well as on their refractive index. Anisotropy can, therefore, play a major role in the optimization of the scattering efficiency in both biological and synthetic materials. In this study, we show that, by ex...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2018.0050
更新日期:2019-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::Pancreatic β-cells use Ca(2+)-dependent exocytosis of large dense core vesicles to release insulin. Exocytosis in β-cells has been studied biochemically, biophysically and optically. We have previously developed a biophysical method to monitor release of endogenous intragranular constituents that are co-released with ...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2010.0006
更新日期:2011-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::The emergence of life on Earth (and elsewhere) must have occurred in a milieu that is far from equilibrium, such as at alkaline hydrothermal vents that would have harboured built-in gradients in temperature, redox potential and pH along with precipitated iron-bearing minerals capable of separating these gradients, con...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2019.0085
更新日期:2019-12-06 00:00:00
abstract::Ultrasound elastography is a technique used for clinical imaging of tissue stiffness with a conventional ultrasound machine. It was first proposed two decades ago, but active research continues in this area to the present day. Numerous clinical applications have been investigated, mostly related to cancer imaging, and...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2011.0011
更新日期:2011-08-06 00:00:00
abstract::Material deformation and pitting from cavitation bubble collapse is investigated using fluid and material dynamics and their interaction. In the fluid, a novel hybrid approach, which links a boundary element method and a compressible finite difference method, is used to capture non-spherical bubble dynamics and result...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2015.0016
更新日期:2015-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::Biological variety and major evolutionary transitions suggest that the space of possible morphologies may have varied among lineages and through time. However, most models of phylogenetic character evolution assume that the potential state space is finite. Here, I explore what the morphological state space might be li...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2015.0049
更新日期:2015-12-06 00:00:00
abstract::Organisms modify and choose components of their local environments. This 'niche construction' can alter ecological processes, modify natural selection and contribute to inheritance through ecological legacies. Here, we propose that niche construction initiates and modifies the selection directly affecting the construc...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2016.0147
更新日期:2017-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::We investigate a model of hard pear-shaped particles which forms the bicontinuous Ia[Formula: see text]d structure by entropic self-assembly, extending the previous observations of Barmes et al. (2003 Phys. Rev. E68, 021708. (doi:10.1103/PhysRevE.68.021708)) and Ellison et al. (2006 Phys. Rev. Lett.97, 237801. (doi:10...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2016.0161
更新日期:2017-08-06 00:00:00
abstract::Biofuels have gained increasing attention as an alternative to fossil fuels for several reasons, one of which is their potential to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transportation sector. Recent studies have questioned the validity of claims about the potential of biofuels to reduce GHG emissions rel...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2010.0016
更新日期:2011-04-06 00:00:00
abstract::Noble metal nanoparticles (NPs) show distinctive plasmonic optical properties and superior photostability, enabling them to serve as photostable multi-coloured optical molecular probes and sensors for real-time in vivo imaging. To effectively study biological functions in vivo, it is essential that the NP probes are b...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2012.0098
更新日期:2013-06-06 00:00:00
abstract::The morphology of the toe epithelium of the rock frog, Staurois parvus (Family Ranidae), was investigated using a variety of microscopical techniques. The toe pad epithelium is stratified (four to five cell layers), the apical parts of the cells of the outermost layer being separated by fluid-filled channels. The surf...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2014.0036
更新日期:2015-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::In recent years, far from arguing that evolutionary approaches to our own species permit us to describe the fundamental character of human nature, a prominent group of cultural evolutionary theorists has instead argued that the very idea of 'human nature' is one we should reject. It makes no sense, they argue, to spea...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2017.0018
更新日期:2017-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::Nanoparticles do not exist in thermodynamical equilibrium because of high surface free energy, thus they have only kinetic stability. Spontaneous changes can be delayed by designed surface coating. In biomedical applications, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) require an optimized coating in order to ...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2016.0068
更新日期:2016-12-06 00:00:00
abstract::Apart from interacting, prey and predators may also avoid each other by moving into refuges where they lack food, yet survive by switching to an energy-saving physiological state. Lotka-Volterra models of predator-prey interactions ignore this option. Therefore, we have modelled this game of 'joining versus opting out...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2013.0034
更新日期:2013-12-06 00:00:00
abstract::Most ecological interactions occur in environments that are spatially and temporally heterogeneous-'patchy'-across a wide range of scales. In contrast, most theoretical models of ecological interactions, especially large-scale models applied to societal issues such as climate change, resource management and human heal...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2011.0084
更新日期:2012-04-06 00:00:00
abstract::Moving from homogeneous water-splitting photocatalytic systems to photoelectrochemical devices requires the preparation and evaluation of novel p-type transparent conductive photoelectrode substrates. We report here on the sensitization of polystyrene-block-poly-(2-vinylpyridine) (PS-b-P2VP) diblock copolymer-template...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2014.0083
更新日期:2015-06-06 00:00:00
abstract::Dynamic remodelling of actin stress fibres (SFs) allows non-muscle cells to adapt to applied forces such as uniaxial cell shortening. However, the mechanism underlying rapid and selective disassembly of SFs oriented in the direction of shortening remains to be elucidated. Here, we investigated how myosin crossbridge c...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2011.0031
更新日期:2011-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::A computational model of the outer hair cell (OHC) of the mammalian cochlea is presented. It addresses the way in which movement of ions controls the cell shape and regulates pH. The model takes into account the possible chloride-bicarbonate exchange function of prestin, a protein highly expressed in the plasma membra...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2014.0018
更新日期:2014-12-06 00:00:00
abstract::The bulk mechanical properties of tissues are highly tuned to the physiological loads they experience and reflect the hierarchical structure and mechanical properties of their constituent parts. A thorough understanding of the processes involved in tissue adaptation is required to develop multi-scale computational mod...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2015.0088
更新日期:2016-02-06 00:00:00
abstract::Yves Bouligand's analysis of the organizations of biological materials in relation to those of liquid crystals enabled the development of the idea that physical forces exerting their actions under strong spatial constraints determine the structures and morphologies of these materials. The different levels of organizat...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2012.0014
更新日期:2012-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::A numerical model for orthogonal cutting using the material point method was applied to woodcutting using a bench plane. The cutting process was modelled by accounting for surface energy associated with wood fracture toughness for crack growth parallel to the grain. By using damping to deal with dynamic crack propagat...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2015.0110
更新日期:2016-06-06 00:00:00
abstract::In recent years, there have been significant advances in our understanding of the functions of mitochondrial complex I other than the generation of energy. These include its role in generation of reactive oxygen species, involvement in the hypoxic tissue response and its possible regulation by nitric oxide (NO) metabo...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2016.0104
更新日期:2017-04-06 00:00:00
abstract::'Managed grazing' is gaining attention for its potential to contribute to climate change mitigation by reducing bare ground and promoting perennialization, thereby enhancing soil carbon sequestration (SCS). Understanding why ranchers adopt managed grazing is key to developing the right incentives. In this paper, we ex...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2020.0027
更新日期:2020-10-06 00:00:00
abstract::The placenta provides all the nutrients required for the fetus through pregnancy. It develops dynamically, and, to avoid rejection of the fetus, there is no mixing of fetal and maternal blood; rather, the branched placental villi 'bathe' in blood supplied from the uterine arteries. Within the villi, the feto-placental...
journal_title:Interface focus
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1098/rsfs.2014.0078
更新日期:2015-04-06 00:00:00