Counting Molecules 2005
Puzzle 1: What is the logic behind designing experiments with and
without complexity?
All information in biology is connected - within and across
hierarchical levels.
Molecules occur at one end of this hierarchy of size and organisms at the
other. What does this mean? Since all information is
continuous, we can start at any point in a biological system and
travel to any other point - by rule. Such rules, which take
the
form of equations, become readily available in a data-driven
biology.
Unfortunately, we are reminded - all too frequently - of a cold,
hard fact. With so many parts and connections, the complexity
of biology becomes so overwhelming that we are forced to retreat and
accept reductionism as our principal research model. Rubbish.
Complexity is what makes biology interesting and deserving of our
attention. It's the very spice of research. Without it,
what would be left to challenge us?
We begin the solution to this puzzle with a basic truth. Organization is
the first step toward understanding complexity. This defines
our strategy. By solving complexity puzzles with equations, we become privy to the organizational
foundations of our methods and to those of the biology we seek to explore.
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