The Principles of Biology, Volume 1 (of 2)Spencer, Herbert
Science
The Principles of Biology, Volume 1 (of 2)
Spencer, Herbert
Biology
While their fundamental traits, expressing the
structure of the type, must be unchangeable, their superficial traits must
admit of modification without much difficulty; and the modified traits,
expressing variations in the parents and immediate ancestors, though
unstable, must be considered as capable of becoming stable in course of
time. (3) Once more we have to think of these physiological units (or
constitutional units as I would now re-name them) as having such natures
that while a minute modification, representing some small change of local
structure, is inoperative on the proclivities of the units throughout the
rest of the system, it becomes operative in the units which fall into the
locality where that change occurs.
But unimaginable as all this is, the facts may nevertheless in some way
answer to it. As before remarked, progressing science reveals complexity
within complexity--tissues made up of cells, cells containing nuclei and
cytoplasm, cytoplasm formed of a protoplasmic matrix containing granules;
and if now we conclude that the unit of protoplasm is itself an
inconceivably elaborate structure, we do but recognize the complexity as
going still deeper. Further, if we must assume that these component units
are in every part of the body acting on one another by extremely
complicated sets of forces (ethereal undulations emanating from each of the
constituent molecules) determining their relative positions and actions, we
are warranted by the discoveries which every day disclose more of the
marvellous properties of matter. When to such examples as were given in
§ 36e we add the example yielded by recent experiments, showing that even a
piece of bread, after subjection to pressure, exhibits diamagnetic
properties unlike those it previously exhibited, we cannot doubt that these
complex units composing living bodies are all of them seats of energies
diffused around, enabling them to act and re-act so as to modify one
another's states and positions. We are shown, too, that whatever be the
natures of the complex forces emanating from each, it will, as a matter of
course, happen that the power of each will be relatively great in its own
neighbourhood and become gradually smaller in parts increasingly remote:
making more comprehensible the autogenous character of each local
structure.
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