PART I 



THE PHYSIOLOGY OF MUSCLE AND NERVE 



SECTION I 

 GENERAL PHYSIOLOGY 



CHAPTER I 

 LIVING SUBSTANCE 



Definition and Scope of Physiology. — The science of physiology 

 deals with the processes occurring in living matter. It is the study of 

 the dynamics of life and as such should be extended to the entire 

 realm of living entities, to animals as well as to plants, and to simple 

 as well as to complex organisms. Physiology, however, deals solely 

 with the functional aspect of living substance, its structural char- 

 acteristics being taken care of by the sciences of morphology, anatomy 

 and histology. But inasmuch as an analysis of the function of a part 

 cannot well be attempted without a thorough understanding of its 

 structure, it must be clear that the best results can only be obtained if 

 these sciences are brought into the closest possible relationship. A 

 study of the function of the eye is scarcely feasible without having 

 obtained first of all a clear conception of the general arrangement and 

 structural details of the tissues entering into its formation. This is 

 also true of the ear, the heart, the brain and all other organs of our 

 body. Physiology, therefore, presents itself as an important unit 

 of the science of biology, which takes cognizance of all things possessing 

 life, as follows: 



Origin and Development; Embryology. 



^ Histology of Plants 



Biology 



Structure . 



Function 



General; Morphology 



Anatomy 

 Special Phytomy 



Zootomy 

 General Physiology 



[ Histology of Animals 



Special Physiology 



Lower Vertebrates 



Mammals 



Man 



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