A cybernetic view of biological growth : the Maia hypothesis / Tony Stebbing.

Maia is the story of an idea, and its development into a working hypothesis, that provides a cybernetic interpretation of how growth is controlled. Growth at the lowest level is controlled by regulating the rate of growth. Access to the output of control mechanisms is provided by perturbing the growing organism, and then filtering out the consequences to growth rate. The output of the growth control mechanism is then accessible for interpretation and modelling. Perturbation experiments have been used to provide interpretations of hormesis, the neutralization of inhibitory load and acquired tolerance to toxic inhibition, and catch-up growth. The account begins with an introduction to cybernetics covering the regulation of growth and population increase in animals and man and describes this new approach to access the control of growth processes. This book is suitable for postgraduate students of biological cybernetics and researchers of biological growth, endocrinology, population ecology and toxicology.

Machine generated contents note: Preface; 1. Maia - the argument in outline; 2. Growth unlimited - growth as a biological explosion; 3. Self-regulating systems - from machine to man; 4. The wealth of homeodynamic responses; 5. A cybernetic approach to growth analysis; 6. A control mechanism for Maia; 7. The three-fold way of adaptation; 8. Population growth and its control; 9. Hierarchy - a controlled harmony; 10. The historical origins of hormesis; 11. Maian mechanisms for hormesis and catch-up growth; 12. Cellular growth control and cancer; 13. Overpopulation; 14. Our finite Earth; 15. The Maia hypothesis and anagenesis; Glossary; References; Index.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 425-435) and index.

"Maia is the story of an idea - and its development into a working hypothesis - that provides a cybernetic interpretation of how growth is controlled. Growth at this level is controlled by regulating the specific rate of growth. Access to control mechanism output is achieved by perturbing the growing system (using low levels of toxic agents) and then filtering out the consequences. The output of the growth control mechanism is then accessible for interpretation and modelling. This approach has been used to provide interpretations of hormesis, homeodynamic adaptation to increased loads and acquired tolerance, and catch-up growth due to relaxation stimulation. The book begins with an introduction to cybernetics in relation to the regulation of growth and population increase in animals and man, and goes on to describe this new experimental technique for accessing growth processes. This book is intended for postgraduate students of biological cybernetics and researchers into biological growth, endocrinology, population ecology and toxicology"--