Timing of Biological Clocks

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Biology
Cover of the book Timing of Biological Clocks by Arthur T. Winfree, Henry Holt and Co.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Arthur T. Winfree ISBN: 9781466813953
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. Publication: November 15, 1986
Imprint: Henry Holt and Co. Language: English
Author: Arthur T. Winfree
ISBN: 9781466813953
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Publication: November 15, 1986
Imprint: Henry Holt and Co.
Language: English

"A clock," writes Arthur T. Winfree, "is not much good if you can't pull out its stem and set it."

Similarly, the most critical property of biological clocks--which rhythmically organize the processes of life--is their ability to reset on cue.

This ability allows enables biological clocks to regain synchrony with a changing environment (as when we travel across time zones) or to maintain the alignment between certain physiological rhythms and the natural solar day.

In The Timing of Biological Clocks, Winfree explores circadian rhythms. In reporting experiments on animals, plants, and single cells, he not only illustrates the principles that guide the resetting of biological clocks but reveals that each of these clocks has a vulnerable phase, a moment in each "turn of the dial" when a cueing stimulus of a particular intensity results in an abnormal, unpredictable resetting--perhaps even annihilating the clock's rhythm entirely.

A singular feature of the author's exploration of these phenomena is his use of a range of colors to represent the passage of cyclic time. By this device, Winfree not only removes the purely arbitrary discontinuity of a conventional clock dial but makes reasoning about the real discontinuities of biological clocks transparently clear.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

"A clock," writes Arthur T. Winfree, "is not much good if you can't pull out its stem and set it."

Similarly, the most critical property of biological clocks--which rhythmically organize the processes of life--is their ability to reset on cue.

This ability allows enables biological clocks to regain synchrony with a changing environment (as when we travel across time zones) or to maintain the alignment between certain physiological rhythms and the natural solar day.

In The Timing of Biological Clocks, Winfree explores circadian rhythms. In reporting experiments on animals, plants, and single cells, he not only illustrates the principles that guide the resetting of biological clocks but reveals that each of these clocks has a vulnerable phase, a moment in each "turn of the dial" when a cueing stimulus of a particular intensity results in an abnormal, unpredictable resetting--perhaps even annihilating the clock's rhythm entirely.

A singular feature of the author's exploration of these phenomena is his use of a range of colors to represent the passage of cyclic time. By this device, Winfree not only removes the purely arbitrary discontinuity of a conventional clock dial but makes reasoning about the real discontinuities of biological clocks transparently clear.

More books from Henry Holt and Co.

Cover of the book The Game of Their Lives by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Gwendolen by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Dilemmas of Domination by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Soundings by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book The Great Art Caper by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Hanukkah in Alaska by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book The New York Times Living History: World War II: The Axis Assault, 1939-1942 by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Morrighan by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book When Zachary Beaver Came to Town by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book My Life as a Book by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book A World Without Work by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book The Devil's Teeth by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book Listen, Liberal by Arthur T. Winfree
Cover of the book The Worst Loss by Arthur T. Winfree
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy