Abstract

Most present day biologists are studying some aspect of how tissue works — some biological function. In attempting to describe the functions of living organisms, biologists have sought to measure those variables that appear to be most important in bringing about the given function. It is clear that the living state is a complex one, involving many variables many of which change in carrying out a given function. However, we believe that by evolutionary processes these changes have been integrated to bring about the given function often in much the same way in different organisms and often with greatest economy to their existence. Thus the measurement of any one of a large number of variables that change together in a reproducible manner during a given function may be adequately correlated with that function for the given conditions studied, and we have in biology a large number of seemingly simple relationships between so called "cause" and "effect". As we study function in increasing detail we find that to reproduce the function we must reproduce the conditions in corresponding detail, and we are gradually led to measure more and more variables.

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