What Is Inorganic Growth?

Growth refers to the process by which solid or new-phase micro-particles (crystal nuclei) generated in liquid or solid metals grow. Also refers to the increase in the length and weight of the individual organism. Another film of the same name, "Growth".

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Growth: The growth of an organism from small to large.

Parents often ask this question: "Our children are as old as those of our neighbors, but no one grows tall, and no parent gets fat. Is there any nutritional deficiency?"

Although the growth and development of children have certain laws, they are affected by various factors within a certain range, and there are considerable individual differences. The so-called normal value is not absolute, and different influence factors of individuals must be considered to correctly judge whether it is normal or abnormal. At the same time, systematic and continuous observation is needed to understand the true situation of children's growth and development.

Some objects in the inorganic world, such as crystal particles of sugar in a supersaturated sugar solution or snowflakes in the air, can also grow. They also take the same substance from the disordered environment, continuously expand the volume, and maintain their own unique shape. But the growth of living things is quite different from the growth in the inorganic world:

1. The growth of inorganic matter is just an outward extension of its original shape. For example, the growth of sodium chloride crystals is from a small cube to a large cube. The asymmetric tartaric acid crystals that L. Pasteur sees under a microscope are actually magnifications of the asymmetric molecules of tartaric acid. While organisms grow, they often grow highly ordered organs or individuals on the basis of seemingly disorderly, with the inherent characteristics of each species. For example, the arrangement of stem cone growth cones of different species of plants is often quite similar at first, and the leaves or branches on the branches that grow from them in the future are arranged oppositely, alternately, or spirally, which are strict. The ground follows a format unique to each species.

2. The growth of inorganic substances is just a simple increase in volume and weight. During the growth of organisms, qualitative changes continue to occur while the quantities such as weight and volume increase. Such as biological body components, although the chemical elements they contain are already in the environment, the compounds formed are very different from the food they consume. Among them, plants and other autotrophs can convert inorganic compounds taken from the outside world into various complex organic compounds that make up their bodies. Animals and other heterotrophs, after eating organic matter, also undergo complex transformations to form their own unique ingredients. During the growth process of organisms, there are also many qualitative changes at various levels of the structure. For example, the basic event of a cell dividing into two cells is itself a very complicated process. One

   The difference in morphology between different organisms reflects the difference in growth rate. Among these differences, the differences in growth patterns between unicellular and multicellular organisms and between animals and plants are the most significant.

   Single-celled organisms, such as bacteria and algae, have the simplest growth method. They cycle in the order of "division enlargement division". On average, the size of each cell or individual changes twice. Sometimes random factors can advance or delay cell division, so the size of the cell can vary slightly more than twice.

   Growth refers to the proliferation, enlargement, and increase of cytoplasm of cells, which are manifested as changes in the size, length, weight, and body composition of tissues, organs, and parts of the body, as well as the whole body. Development refers to the continuous improvement of the differentiation and function of cells and tissues, the development of psychology and intelligence, and the acquisition of motor skills, which are qualitative changes. At the end of growth and development, the individual reaches maturity, and the morphology and function reach the adult level. The functions of various organs and systems are basically complete, bone calcification is completed, and the sexual organs have the ability to reproduce offspring.

   Although growth and development have different concepts and connotations, throughout the process of growth and development, with the gradual increase of morphology, the weight gradually increases, which must inevitably manifest as functional differentiation and enhancement, and the perfection of organ functions must reach a certain level during growth. Degree. In some cases, these two words can be used interchangeably. For example, "height growth" can be described as "height development", but in other cases, it cannot be replaced, such as "sexual development" cannot be said as "sexual growth." ^[1]

   There is a certain quantitative relationship between the growth rates of various parts of the organism. Especially in plants due to different environmental conditions

   In theory, because the morphology of an organism is the result of development and growth, the analysis of morphology cannot be separated from the analysis of growth rate. The differences in the genotypes of different organisms must inevitably determine the differences in the morphology of the organisms through the effect on the growth rate. As shown in the examples in Figures 4 and 5, organs or individuals with different shapes from small to large are described by mathematical formulas containing only one or two parameters. For genetic analysis of morphology and simulation calculation of growth, both Very useful.

   In terms of application, agricultural production, whether it is plant (crop, fruit tree, forest) or animal (poultry, livestock, fish) as the object of production, the growth rate determines the product (including livestock products, aquatic products). The main process of quantity. How to change the biological environment to accelerate growth, or to breed varieties with high growth rates to obtain more agricultural products, is one of the central topics of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and aquaculture. Here, the study of the quantitative law of growth occupies a particularly important position.

   It is important to distinguish between relative growth rate and absolute growth rate in production. During the exponential growth period, the relative growth rate of the organism is the largest, and then the relative growth rate gradually decreases, and then the absolute growth rate also decreases, forming an S-shaped curve. However, the absolute growth rate of the entire organism is not the largest during the exponential growth period. The maximum growth rate occurs when the relative growth rate decreases and the absolute growth rate begins to decrease, that is, at the inflection point of the curve in FIG. 6.

   Several other indicators of growth that should be distinguished are growth rate, material (feed) conversion efficiency, and weight. The growth rate calculated on an individual basis is higher in large animals than in small animals, but the weight that a unit of feed may grow, that is, the material conversion efficiency, has nothing to do with body size. As far as the same animal is concerned, the growth rate is not necessarily large. From the S-shaped diagram, after the inflection point, although the weight is still increasing, the growth rate has decreased, and generally speaking, the material conversion efficiency is gradually reduced. The animal husbandry industry is more concerned about producing as many animal products as possible with the same amount of feed, and therefore focuses on feed conversion.

   In agriculture, forestry, fruit trees, vegetables and other industries that use plants as production objects, although feed is not fed, the raw materials and energy (water, inorganic nutrients, and solar energy) for plant production are also limited in unit land area, so the pursuit of It is the gain of as much agricultural products per unit of land area as possible or after deducting agricultural costs such as fertilizers. In order to make full use of solar energy, the plants are often dense, so the individual cannot be fully developed, and the individual growth rate is much lower than that of the single plant cultivation. Compared with the "rice king" and "cotton king" of the single plant seen in the exhibition, the plants in high-yielding fields are dwarfed because the goals pursued are different.

   The economic value of most crops, poultry and livestock, and various parts of the body varies. Therefore, when calculating the product value from the total weight of the organism, it is necessary to know the proportion of each part. Due to the phenomenon of heterogeneous growth, the proportion of each part changes with the growth of the organism, thus affecting the value of unit weight. Therefore, in calculating the maximum output value and maximum return, the quantity law of heterogeneous growth must be taken into account.

   In medicine, it is necessary to know the growth rate of normal children and the range of change, as an indicator for diagnosing too slow or too fast weight gain due to malnutrition and endocrine disorders. The speed at which children's bodies grow with age is also indispensable for the manufacture of children's clothing, shoes and hats and children's appliances such as classroom tables and chairs.