Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Firstness
(
Possibles
)
Secondness
(
Actuals, or
Matter/Energy
)
Thirdness
(
Information, or
Regularities/Laws
)
Fig. 6.8 A postulated evolution (or reification) of
possibles
into
actuals
and associated
informa-
tion
(
and laws
). The nodes are read in the counter clock-wise direction starting from the top node
3.
Possibles
,
Actual
s, and
Information
may reflect the ontological triad of Peirce.
The similarity between Figs.
6.8
and
4.5
may be significant. The similarity may
be transformed into an identity simply by equating the Gnergy with the Possibles of
Peircean metaphysics, leading to the following conclusions:
Gnergy is the source of possibles out of which all actuals in the Universe are derived.
(6.35)
6.2.11 The Triadic Model of Function
The notion of the
structure-function correlation
is widely discussed in biology. In
fact, biology may be defined as the scientific study of the correlations between
structure
and
function
of living systems at multiple levels of organization, from
molecules to the human body and brain (Polanyi 1968; Bernstein 1967; Kelso and
Zanone 2002). The concept of
functio
n is not dichotomous or dyadic as the familiar
phrase “structure-function correlation” may suggest but is here postulated to be
triadic
in the sense that a function involves three essential elements
- structure
,
processes
, and
mechanisms
,
all organized within an appropriate boundary or an
environmental condition that constrains the processes to perform a function.
M. Polanyi (1891-1976) clearly realized the fundamental role played by boundary
conditions in effectuating living processes at the molecular, cellular, and higher
levels (Polanyi 1968). A similar idea was expressed by N. Bernstein (1967) at the
level of human body movement. Polanyi's and Bernstein's ideas may be expressed
in the language of information theory:
I
X
¼
log
2
ð
w
0
=
w
x
Þ
bits
(6.36)
the number of all possible processes allowed for by the laws of physics and
chemistry, and w
x
is the number of processes actually selected by the boundary
conditions to perform Function X. Equation
6.36
quantitatively expresses the idea
that functions are processes selected (or constrained) by appropriate boundary
