Adaptation in pathological processes / by William H. Welch.

  • Welch, William Henry, 1850-1934.
Date:
1937
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Adaptation in pathological processes / by William H. Welch. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    As the word teleology ” has come to have, in the minds of many, so bad a repute in the biological sciences, and as I desire, without entering into any elaborate discussion of the subtle questions here in¬ volved, to avoid misconceptions in discussing subjects whose ultimate explanation is at present beyond our ken, I shall here briefly state my opinion that all of those vital manifestations to which are applied such epithets as adaptive, regulatory, regenerative, com¬ pensatory, protective, are the necessary results of the action of forms of energy upon living matter. The final result, however useful and purposeful it may be, in no way directly influences the chain of events which leads to its production, and, therefore, the character of the result affords no explanation what¬ ever of the mechanism by which the end, whether it appear purposeful or not, has been accomplished. In every case the ultimate aim of inquiry is a me¬ chanical explanation of the process in question. Not¬ withstanding valuable contributions, especially within recent years, toward such mechanical explanations, we are still far removed from the attainment of this aim. The knowledge of the fact that the living body is possessed of means calculated to counteract the