Emergence and Modularity in Life Sciences

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Synopsis

This book focuses on modules and emergence with self-organization in the life sciences. As Aristotle observed so long ago, the whole is more than the sum of its parts. However, contemporary science is dominated by reductionist concepts and tends to neglect the non-reproducible features of complex systems, which emerge from the interaction of the smaller units they are composed of. The book is divided into three major parts; the essays in part A highlight the conceptual basis of emergence, linking it to the philosophy of science, systems biology and sustainability. This is subsequently exemplified in part B by applying the concept of emergence to various biological disciplines, such as genetics, developmental biology, neurobiology, plant physiology and ecology. New aspects of emergence come into play when biology meets the technical sciences, as revealed in a chapter on bionics. In turn, part C adopts a broader view, revealing how the organization of life follows a hierarchical order in terms of scalar dimensions, ranging from the molecular level to the entire biosphere. The idea that life is primarily and exclusively shaped by processes at the molecular level (and, in particular, by the information encoded in the genome) is refuted; rather, there is no hierarchy with respect to the level of causation in the cross-talk between the levels. In the last two chapters, the evolutionary trend toward ever-increasing complexity in living systems is interpreted in terms of the Gaia hypothesis sensu Lovelock: the entire biosphere is viewed as a functional unit (or ‘holobiont-like system’) organized to develop and sustain life on Earth.

Book details

Edition:
1st ed. 2019
Author:
Lars H. Wegner, Ulrich Lüttge
ISBN:
9783030061289
Related ISBNs:
9783030061272
Publisher:
Springer International Publishing
Pages:
N/A
Reading age:
Not specified
Includes images:
Yes
Date of addition:
2019-04-13
Usage restrictions:
Copyright
Copyright date:
2019
Copyright by:
Springer Nature Switzerland AG 
Adult content:
No
Language:
English
Categories:
Nonfiction, Philosophy, Science