Abstract
The application of systems thinking and the principles of general systems science to problems in the life sciences is not a new endeavor. In the 1960s systems theory and biology attracted the interest of many notable biologists, cyberneticists, mathematicians, and engineers. The avalanche of new quantitative data (genome, proteome, physiome) incited by the boundless advances in molecular and cellular biology has reawakened interest in and kindled rediscovery of formal model-building techniques. The manifold perspectives presented in many ways is a re-embodiment of the general theory of organismic systems and serves as an impetus to suggest that organized complexity can be understood. The particular affinity expressed in this essay is a reflection of how closely my thinking is associated with the thoughts of Ludwig von Bertalanffy, Ervin Laszlo, and Robert Rosen. We are, by all accounts, at the threshold of a postgenomic era that truly belongs to the biology of systems.
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Kresh, J.Y. (2006). Integrative Systems View of Life: Perspectives from General Systems Thinking. In: Deisboeck, T.S., Kresh, J.Y. (eds) Complex Systems Science in Biomedicine. Topics in Biomedical Engineering International Book Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33532-2_1
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