Synonyms
Definition
Constraint refers to a reduction of the degrees of freedom of the elements of a system exerted by some collection of elements, or a limitation or bias on the variability or possibilities of change in the kind of such elements.
Although the term has several meanings in diverse scientific fields, the idea of a constraint is usually employed in relation to conceptualizations in terms of levels or hierarchies. Some general features of constraints such understood are the following: constraints do not interact with the elements they influence and their dynamics; they arise from dynamics at different levels of organization; constraint relations are always asymmetric, and may give rise to new phenomena.
In the tradition of the theories of emergent evolution of the early twentieth century and, even clearer, in the theory of levels of integration of the organicist tradition of the 1930s, higher levels are understood as arising from...
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Acknowledgments
Funding for this work was provided by grants GV/EJ IT505-10 from the Government of the Basque Country, and FFI2011-25665 from the Ministerio de Economía y Competitivad (MEC) and FEDER funds from the E.C.
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Umerez, J., Mossio, M. (2013). Constraint. In: Dubitzky, W., Wolkenhauer, O., Cho, KH., Yokota, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Systems Biology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9863-7_56
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9863-7_56
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