In this chapter we are concerned with the mechanisms of organic photochemical reactions. Two important features of mechanisms are the correlation of molecular structure with reactivity and the investigation and establishment of the details of the elementary steps involved in a photochemical process as *R proceeds to P. We shall be concerned with the experimental tools for characterizing the str...

Carbohydrates are the most abundant and structurally diverse class of biological compounds in nature. However, our current understanding regarding the relationship between carbohydrate structure and its biological function is still far from what is known regarding proteins and nucleic acids. Initially, carbohydrates were only recognized as structural and energy storage molecules (e.g. cellulose...

Philosophers of science principally associate the causal-mechanical view of scientific explanation with the work of Peter Railton and Wesley Salmon. In this paper I shall argue that the defects of this view arise from an inadequate analysis of the concept of mechanism. I contrast Salmon’s account of mechanisms in terms of the causal-nexus with my own account of mechanisms, in which mechanisms a...

The non-mevalonate dependent (NMVA) pathway for the biosynthesis of isopentenyl pyrophosphate and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate is the sole source of these terpenoids for the production of isoprenoids in the apicomplexan parasites, in many eubacteria, and in plants. The absence of this pathway in higher organisms has opened a new platform for the development of novel antibiotics and anti-malarial...

The purpose of time series analysis via mechanistic models is to reconcile the known or hypothesized structure of a dynamical system with observations collected over time. We develop a framework for constructing nonlinear mechanistic models and carrying out inference. Our framework permits the consideration of implicit dynamic models, meaning statistical models for stochastic dynamical systems ...

The thermal oxidation of propane in the temperature range 350-425oC was studied in order to elucidate the role of higher aldehydes as degenerate branching intermediates in the oxidation of hydrocarbons. In the slow combustion of propane, the high yield of propylene and methanol as the primary products, the formation of hydrogen peroxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, formaldehyde and steam a...

From a protein structural viewpoint, tryptophan is often considered an inert structural amino acid, playing a role as a hydrophobic anchor in membrane proteins or as part of the hydrophobic core of soluble proteins. However, tryptophan is the only polyaromatic amino acid and, from a chemical viewpoint, possesses unique reactivity owing to the electron-richness of the indole system. This reactiv...

Within modern philosophy of biology the topic of mechanistic explanation has become a central theme for critical discussion. The neo-mechanical philosophers have developed accounts that emphasize intervention and manipulation as the central epistemic tools that allow gaining epistemic access upon the mechanisms and have argued that the processes of inter-field integration across disciplines can...

" The mission of the Journal of General Physiology is to publish original work of the highest quality that elucidates basic biological, chemical, or physical mechanisms of broad physiological signifi cance. This expectation — that the articles provide mechanistic insight — has served the Journal well; it also has been cause for much uncertainty , mostly pertaining to what actually constitutes m...