Collection of essays by eminent scientists on the theme of integrative approaches to physiological problems. It will be of interest to biologists who wonder how, and in what way, the current avalanche of information emerging from modern reductive science can be put together in such a way that appropriate function at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and organismal levels ensues. In essence the collection is a response to Sir James Black's remark that the future lay in a `progressive triumph of physiology over molecular biology'. A landmark work.