﻿86 
  THE 
  CRITERIA 
  OF 
  LIVINGNESS 
  

  

  bodies 
  by 
  provoking 
  an 
  immediate 
  and 
  violent 
  reactional 
  

   response 
  to 
  the 
  introduction 
  of 
  any 
  substance 
  which 
  might 
  

   change 
  it." 
  

  

  (c) 
  Persistence 
  in 
  Spite 
  of 
  Change. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  ordinary 
  chemical 
  changes 
  in 
  the 
  inorganic 
  domain, 
  

   as 
  in 
  the 
  weathering 
  of 
  rocks, 
  one 
  substance 
  changes 
  into 
  

   another. 
  Iron 
  becomes 
  rust. 
  So 
  is 
  it 
  also 
  in 
  the 
  living 
  

   body, 
  but 
  there 
  we 
  encounter 
  a 
  new 
  and 
  characteristic 
  fea- 
  

   ture 
  continual 
  restitution 
  or 
  recuperation. 
  The 
  reactions 
  

   are 
  not 
  self-destructive. 
  Repair 
  counteracts 
  waste 
  ceaselessly. 
  

   There 
  is 
  a 
  continual 
  balancing 
  of 
  accounts 
  so 
  that 
  debts 
  are 
  

   more 
  or 
  less 
  effectively 
  avoided. 
  Without 
  metaphor, 
  the 
  

   specific 
  organisation 
  is 
  continuously 
  repaired 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  

   specific 
  activity 
  continues, 
  and 
  if 
  organisms 
  after 
  they 
  

   once 
  got 
  grip 
  had 
  been 
  content 
  to 
  remain 
  relatively 
  simple 
  

   they 
  need 
  never 
  have 
  died 
  a 
  natural 
  death. 
  

  

  We 
  regard 
  this 
  characteristic 
  as 
  fundamental, 
  the 
  capac- 
  

   ity 
  of 
  retaining 
  integrity 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  ceaseless 
  specific 
  change, 
  

   one 
  may 
  almost 
  say 
  through 
  change. 
  For 
  the 
  energy 
  lib- 
  

   erated 
  in 
  katabolism 
  is 
  used 
  to 
  promote 
  compensating 
  anabo- 
  

   lism. 
  The 
  more 
  it 
  changes, 
  the 
  more 
  it 
  remains 
  the 
  same 
  

   thing; 
  the 
  most 
  intensely 
  living 
  animals 
  have 
  the 
  most 
  per- 
  

   sistent 
  integrity 
  of 
  form. 
  In 
  any 
  case, 
  an 
  organism 
  was 
  

   not 
  worthy 
  of 
  the 
  name 
  until 
  it 
  showed, 
  for 
  a 
  time 
  at 
  least, 
  

   not 
  merely 
  activity, 
  but 
  persistent 
  activity 
  a 
  power 
  of 
  bal- 
  

   ancing 
  accounts. 
  Like 
  a 
  clock 
  the 
  organism 
  is 
  always 
  run- 
  

   ning 
  down 
  and 
  always 
  needing 
  to 
  be 
  wound 
  up 
  ; 
  but 
  unlike 
  

   a 
  clock 
  it 
  can 
  wind 
  itself 
  up, 
  if 
  it 
  gets 
  food 
  and 
  rest. 
  In 
  

   green 
  plants, 
  as 
  every 
  one 
  knows, 
  there 
  is 
  usually 
  a 
  quite 
  

   unnecessary 
  amount 
  of 
  winding 
  up 
  with 
  the 
  interesting 
  

   far-off 
  result 
  that 
  animals, 
  utilising 
  already 
  manufactured 
  

  

  