Opportunities and Handicaps of Antipodean Scientists: A.J. Nicholson and V.A. Bailey on the Balance of Animal Populations.

摘要

After careful observation and thought, a biologist rndevelops a 'theory'. Yet there is a danger that this theory rnmay have little value to science, and might not rnnecessarily lead to a better understanding of nature. If a rntheory can be quantified and translated into a math- rnematical language, it is possible to test more precisely if rnit accords with nature by making quantitative predictions rnand carrying out experiments to test if these predictions rnare sound. Therefore there is an abiding need for rncollaboration between biological and quantitative rnscience.