Inferring Process from Pattern in Natural CommunitiesCan we understand what we see

basic assumption of scientific investigation is that observed phenomena have underlying physical causes (Beck 1982). Understanding causes-the biotic and abiotic processes of nature-can explain why the world is the way it appears and how it can change. Biologists use the word pattern to describe the observable traits of a system and their configuration. Pattern is what is seen, whether using an electron microscope or a satellite imaging system. Biologists and other scientists apply logic, experience, and statistical analysis to explain a pattern in terms of the processes believed to underlie it. But to

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