From Wikipedia,
the free encyclopedia.
Homeorhesis, derived
from the
Greek for "similar flow", is a
concept encompassing dynamical
systems which return to a
trajectory, as opposed to systems
which return to a particular
state, which is termed
homeostasis.
The word itself is a
little-used
term of art in biology, where
it describes the tendency of
developing or changing organisms
to continue development or change
towards a given state, even if
disturbed in development. The term
was first coined by
C.H. Waddington, on or before
1940, along with the related
term
chreod, meaning "necessary
path", which is the trajectory to
which the system tends to return.
In
ecology the concept is
important as an element of the
Gaia theory, where the system
under consideration is the
ecological balance of different
forms of life on the planet.
