Phenomenological vs Physiological Modeling

Definition

Phenomenological versus physiological modeling is an alternative that may also be presented as macroscopic versus mechanistic. It opposes two viewpoints on deterministic modeling, the first assuming that modeling of natural phenomena is meant to make reliable predictions on the evolution of these phenomena, irrespective of their actual underlying mechanisms, whereas the second prefers to describe them by using all relevant physiological knowledge available about them. In systems biology, the second point of view usually prevails – all the more so as model reduction may yield as macroscopic a representation as wanted, starting from a level of description that aims at giving an exhaustive insight into the detailed components of the phenomenon under study. One advantage of this physiological, or mechanistic, perspective is that it is adapted to represent built-in or external control on the evolution of phenomena by including precise control targets in such a physiological...