Holistic research

Over the last decade our view of chemistry has evolved substantially. Whereas individual researchers previously focused on specific areas of chemistry, such as inorganic, organic, etc. we now take a more holistic approach. Effective and efficient research projects now incorporate whatever aspects of the chemistry subdisciplines that are needed to complete the intended work. 

The issues that, according to these authors, should be included in research conducted in order to reach an understanding of the holistic nature of culture-bound syndromes are as follows identifying the nature of the phenomenon, situating the syndrome within the social context, the relation between the syndrome and the psychiatric disorders included in current classifications, and the social and psychiatric history of the syndrome. By following these steps it will be possible to correctly identify the phenomenology and subtypes of the syndrome, the social characteristics of the people who suffer from it and the risk factors, as well as to study the relation with other psychiatric disorders and even other syndromes that are specific to other cultures. 

At the short end of the temporal decision timescale on the research map, there currently exists another area where no or very few EM techniques exist. In this region, which covers manufacturing levels between cell and enterprise, manufacturers are beginning to consider new short-term influences on their production and operations processes to improve economic and environmental performance. As part of a holistic approach, they require techniques to help them manage their energy consumption at this timescale. 

Bob Williams As a scientist I would say, that as far as reductionism is concerned, we could think how far physics has got. Now physicists would say that given the Big Bang at a tenth of minus fiftieth of a second, they can come all the way forward to the present time as far as most dead things are concerned, and they ve achieved that conclusion over a very long period of time. I don t know how far this reductionist game will go as far as living things are concerned. What I worry about is, if I am not allowed to say that all the scientific activity is in some way reductionist, what does holistic research mean. What is it exactly If somebody could answer what is holistic research, I would be very interested. 

Lisa Lloyd I thought that Steven Rose gave a very vivid description of holistic research. 

Steven Rose I m not sure that I actually quite understand your question, Bob. What I was describing was systems which when you tried to reduce them you lost the sense of the system - you couldn t actually do it. Now that s an irreducible aspect of a particular form of living system, and it s one that you and I agree on. I don t care whether it s called holistic research or not, it s an example of finding the right level and finding the right type of description for the phenomenon that you want to study, and that seems to... 

Analysis of biological data has now become far more complex, and there is a drive to develop software to allow disparate data sets, such as sequence, literature, clinical data and expression analyses, to all be accessible and interlinked. This allows movement between information systems and provides more complex meta-ana-lyses of these data sets, allowing a holistic view of biological research, in place of the current fragmented view we have available to us. This will ultimately lead to the blurring of boundaries between different disciplines, such as the areas of che-... 

The relationship between the quality concept and human or animal health needs to be established from a holistic health perspective. The Louis Bolk Instituut has already started animal feeding experiments. Such research can only be done if foodstuffs are available which have been produced using well-balanced processes, in the sense described above, and which have thus achieved an optimum level of quality (defined hereunder). 

It will be apparent from this brief survey that both the models in which most investment has been made show promise, and each offer certain advantages. In both cases there is a need for further investment in research to develop a clearer and more confident understanding of how best these methods can be integrated effectively with other information relating to allergenic activity to provide a holistic assessment of likely sensitizing potential. 

All research questions share the characteristic of investigating value chain processes and decisions holistically like in an integrated ecosystem. Operations Research methods and Information Technology provide the capabilities to be successful in this interdisciplinary research. 

Faculty resources An answer key and examples of analytical and holistic grading rubrics for major writing assignments (journal-quality paper, poster, and research proposal) are available at the Web site for faculty adopting the book. 

At least for the present, it seems impractical to hope that we will be able to identify, empirically, all the environmental impacts that should be evaluated. Increasingly, researchers are working on collections of cells, micro-organisms, and entire mini-ecosystems, in which a broad range of subjects and surrogates are combined with mathematical models in an attempt to develop a more-accurate and holistic prediction or measurement of the effect of a chemical on an ecosystem. 

It is necessary to drive forward research on the effectiveness of the biodynamic preparations in order to provide sound practical recommendations for the frequency and timing of their use. However, discussions are required to decide whether it makes sense to assess the effect of individual biodynamic practices in isolation from the overall method, as these practices were proposed as part of a comprehensive farming system (Steiner 2004), the impulse of which is based, in particular, on a holistic understanding of agricultural processes. A complex, holistic, systemic form of science would be appropriate to biodynamic farming (Baars 2002), but has not yet been realised (Lockeretz 2000). It is unclear what would constitute holistic research. Phenomenological descriptions of the overall context are without doubt a key element that has been developed in much detail in the context of anthroposophic research over the past 80 years (Bockemtlhl 1992). However, does holistic research mean that the approach to every... 

There has been a long-standing and unfruitful opposition between reductionist and holistic science in connection with agricultural and ecological research (see e.g. Lockeretz and Anderson 1993, Thompson 1995, Rowe 1997), which has hampered cross-disciplinary cooperation. From the holistic view, analytic, reductive methods are necessarily reductionist and are therefore bad science because they do not capture the connectedness of complex reality. Furthermore they are (at least in part) to blame for the present agricultural and environmental problems. From the reductionist view, analytic, reductive methods ensure the objectivity of science, and other methods are, therefore, not scientific. 

The efforts toward more holistic approaches to research in organic agriculture can be divided into four grorrps ... 

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