Chapter V Trends and Problems in the Study of Investigation of Physiology of Activity

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses trends and problem in the study of investigation of physiology of activity. New concepts and problems which have arisen out of the development of cybernetics have powerfully seized the attention of physiologists. The overwhelming majority of these problems appearing in physiological journals indicate a desire to establish a rapprochement between the current state of cybernetic theory and the attitudes and achievements of classical Russian physiology. Movements are almost the only expressions of the life activity of the organism. Movements are the means by which it does not simply passively interact with the environment, but actively acts upon it in whatever way is necessary. The progressive growth in the complexity and power of technical devices has demonstrated very clearly that problems of control and regulation form an independent area of study—a study which is in no way less complex, important or comprehensive than that of the energies which are subordinated to these controls.