Abstract:

An everlasting 'young' subject, but not so much burdened with ideology as the present evolution-creation-debate: Where are the borders between scientific fields? Is chemistry only physics of the outer electrons of atoms, thus is physics a 'super'science? And from philosophical point of view: What is the relationship between parts and the whole?

New discoveries shift borders: Nanotechnology is incorporated in technological processes, quantum computers seem feasible in realistic periods, genetic analysis can track down biological substances for generations, and customers find by genetic finger prints a path from the steak to the farmer.

Are there specific, completely different features of biological, chemical, and physical processes?

The other way round the demand and necessity for holistic views of the various kinds is increasing, systemic questions gain importance, which supposedly seem to push details to the background.

The interrelation of parts determine form and contents of the whole. The description of reality must be able to represent this complexity.