Entailment patterns and their effects...

[Judith Rosen <***>]

One of the big stumbling  blocks in getting across the notion that relational matters are both critically important in any scientific study of causality and can also be studied in a scientific (systematic) way is the fact that relations are destroyed by reductionism...It stands to reason, then, doesn't it? All our scientific approaches, techniques, even our definition of science, itself, has been based on a reductionist frame of reference, or mindset. It's the frame of reference that needs to be broadened, really, thought myself to me... So, I was trying to come up with some examples that are familiar to everyone, including non-scientists, that could starkly illustrate some of these issues and ideas. I think I have found a few. (I would also welcome and encourage any further contributions from the list!)

The idea for this came to me as I watched a mild virus work its way through members of my household and the "insight-lightbulb" went on: We recognize various disease organisms by the pattern of symptoms which are caused when they interact with our physiology. What's happening could be described this way: When some specific pathogen's entailment pattern interacts with our entailment pattern, a new pattern is generated-- a pattern of  symptoms progressing over time in a disease process... We can document that pattern because it is generally consistent and reproducible, and we can often accurately assign that pattern to the organism responsible, thereby giving ourselves a means for identifying which pathogen is involved in a given situation purely from this characteristic pattern of symptoms. Even if we are not able to identify the exact species of organism from such a pattern, we can often identify the type of organism (bacterial, viral, protozoan, prion...). How is it we are able to do that? We are already doing it, so if we can illuminate how we are doing it, I think we will also illuminate why it is that we CAN do it.

Any thoughts from the group?

Judith
Web address: http://www.rosen-enterprises.com
BioTheory: An electronic journal of general science based on the Relational (Rosennean) Complexity Paradigm