On 4/22/16 9:18 AM, Poul-Henning Kamp wrote:
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In message <7521eb48-ebcd-c037-4dcc-8581ed857...@earthlink.net>, jimlux writes:
For many years, physiologists eschewed the use of mathematical models.
Uhm, that is not really a fair claim.
It stems back to the late 19th century, when there was a general thing
of "the structure reveals all" because for centuries, the knowledge came
from dissection of whatever it was you were studying. Johannes Mueller
was a big proponent of this approach and since he was "the guy" back
then, most followed his lead, although Carl Ludwig did develop the
kymograph. Later there was a focus on chemistry as the basis for things
happening and identifying pathways of one sort or another, but in a sort
of a qualitative way, with limited mathematical modeling (other than
things like statistical analyses).
As you point out, mathematical methods were not as well developed,
particularly for manipulation of data sets that could be practically
collected. When you're looking at traces of EKG recorded using a frog
leg dipped in ink as the transducer, Fourier analysis isn't the first
thing that springs to mind.
The research field of "permanent biomonitoring" is barely five years
old in terms of usable datasets.
The data available to researchers until now have been so few and
of such limited duration that mathematical models simply didn't
contribute constructively.
Well, there's been significant modeling activity for at least 50 years.
The famous paper by Hirsch and Bishop on heart rate coupling to
respiration (1981) actually shows a plot identified as Bode plot. The
coupling was identified by Ludwig back in 1847, but nobody looked at
modeling it until much later.
These days, folks do things like model hemodynamic systems using SPICE
Now that electronics have shrunk, physically and in terms of power,
it has finally become feasible to measure Homo Sapiens in its natural
habitat, and the first indicative results of the shape of such
stories:
http://www.techtimes.com/articles/149164/20160411/fitbit-tracker-likely-saved-this-mans-life-leading-doctors-to-shock-his-heart-back-to-normal.htm
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