CHAPTER 4 BIOLOGICAL DESIGN

Scaling- the study of size and its consequences

SIZE

*the larger an animal, the greater the significance of gravity

*the smaller an animal, the more it is ruled by surface forces

RELATIONSHIPS AMONG LENGTH, AREA AND VOLUME

*biggest cube encloses relatively more volume per unit of surface area, thus it has less surface area per
unit of volume than a smaller cube*

Relative changes between volume and surface area- a change in size inevitably requires a change in
design to maintain overall performance

S α l2

V α l3

Structures that are adapted to promote exchange of materials typically have large surface areas

As body size increases, oxygen consumption per unit mass decreases

Heat loss- proportional to surface area

Heat generation- proportional to volume

VOLUME AND MASS

m α v, m α l3

*an animal must have different shapes at different ages (sizes)

Allometry- change in shape in correlation with a change in size

Allometric equation= y=bxa

Where: b and a are constants

Positive allometry- the growing feature grows faster than a reference part

Negative allometry- the growing feature grows slower than a reference part

Isometry- growth in which the proportions remain constant and neither positive/negative allometry occurs