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The Surface Stress Theory: Nonvitalism in Action

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Bacterial Growth and Form

Abstract

D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson (1942) spent the two world wars writing and then rewriting On Growth and Form. His strictly reductionist thesis is that biology reflects engineering principles. He details two types of tenets. First, biological structures are constructed, whether by a “creator” or by Darwinian evolution, with the same design considerations that a human engineer or architect would employ. Secondly, biological systems use engineering principles to achieve biological ends.

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© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Koch, A.L. (1995). The Surface Stress Theory: Nonvitalism in Action. In: Bacterial Growth and Form. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1779-5_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1779-5_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-5717-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-1779-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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