title: Theoretical principles for biology: Organization.
abstract: In the search of a theory of biological organisms, we propose to adopt organization as a theoretical principle. Organization constitutes an overarching hypothesis that frames the intelligibility of biological objects, by characterizing their relevant aspects. After a succinct historical survey on the understanding of organization in the organicist tradition, we offer a specific characterization in terms of closure of constraints. We then discuss some implications of the adoption of organization as a principle and, in particular, we focus on how it fosters an original approach to biological stability, as well as and its interplay with variation.
authors: Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques (IHPST, UMR 8590), CNRS/Paris 1/ENS, 13, rue du four, 75006, Paris, France. Electronic address: matteo.mossio@univ-paris1.fr.
authors: Matteo
authors: M
authors: Mossio
authors: Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques (IHPST, UMR 8590), CNRS/Paris 1/ENS, 13, rue du four, 75006, Paris, France; Laboratoire "Matière et Systèmes Complexes" (MSC), UMR 7057 CNRS, Université Paris 7 Diderot, 75205, Paris, France.
authors: Maël
authors: M
authors: Montévil
authors: Centre Cavaillès, République des Savoirs, CNRS USR 3608, Collège de France et Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris, France; Department of Integrative Physiology and Pathobiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors: Giuseppe
authors: G
authors: Longo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001695:Biology / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological
keywords: Closure; Constraints; Organicism; Organization; Stability; Theoretical principle