Scaling in Biology

Erscheinungsjahr 2000
ISBN: 978-0-19-513142-0
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 368 Seiten, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 229 mm, Gewicht: 597 g

Reihe: Santa Fe Institute Studies on the Sciences of Complexity

Scaling relationships have been a persistent theme in biology at least since the time of Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo. Because scaling relationships are among the most general empirical patterns in biology, they have stimulated research to develop mechanistic hypotheses and mathematical models. While there have been many excellent empirical and theoretical investigations, there has been little attempt to synthesize this diverse but interrelated area of biology. In an effort to fill this void, Scaling in Biology, the first general treatment of scaling in biology in over 15 years, covers a broad spectrum of the most relevant topics in a series of chapters written by experts in the field. Some of those topics discussed include allometry and fractal structure, branching of vascular systems of mammals and plants, biomechanical and life history of plants, invertebrates and vertebrates, and species-area patterns of biological diversity. Many more examples are included within this text to complete the broader picture. Scaling in Biology conveys the diversity, promise, and excitement of current research in this area, in a format accessible to a wide audience of not only specialists in the various sub-disciplines, but also students and anyone with a serious interest in biology.

Scaling relationships are a persistent theme in biology. Examples include branching patterns of blood vessels, structural and functional correlates of body size, distribution of body size and abundance among species, and variations in populations within an area or over time. This book, based on a conference at the Santa Fe Institute, brings together many of the most prominent workers in the area to assess our current understanding of scaling relationships at the physiological, biomechanical, and ecological levels.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Brown, James H

West, Geoffrey B

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Chemie Chemie Allgemein Chemometrik, Chemoinformatik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Taxonomie und Systematik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Tierkunde / Zoologie Tierethologie
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Botanik
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Angewandte Biologie Biomathematik