INTRODUCTION

The illustrious scientific career of Michael Polanyi, the Hungarian born scientist and polymath, encompassed topics ranging from chemical dynamics to the philosophy of science. In “Life's Irreducible Structure,” an article he published more than five decades ago, Professor Polanyi proposed that organic life, specifically human self‐conscious and rational life, could not be reduced to the physicochemical laws that he had spent a lifetime studying.^[1] In this essay, I will detail his arguments, and submit that, in spite of the significant scientific advances made since the publication of his article, Professor Polanyi's insights are still relevant. Drawing on his insights, I will also submit a contemporary conceptual framework for experimental strategies to better understand the principles underlying life processes. Since the major content of this perspective is my interpretation of Polanyi's arguments in his seminal paper, references are provided only when other articles are sourced.

中文翻译：

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生命不可简化的结构：五年后，我们在哪里？

介绍

出生于匈牙利的科学家兼博学者迈克尔·波兰尼 (Michael Polanyi) 杰出的科学生涯涵盖了从化学动力学到科学哲学的各个主题。波兰尼教授在他五十多年前发表的一篇文章《生命的不可还原的结构》中提出，有机生命，特别是人类的自觉和理性生命，不能还原为他毕生研究的物理化学规律。^{[ 1 ]}在这篇文章中，我将详细介绍他的论点，并指出，尽管自他的文章发表以来取得了重大的科学进步，但波兰尼教授的见解仍然具有相关性。借鉴他的见解，我还将提交一个用于实验策略的当代概念框架，以更好地理解生命过程的基本原理。由于这个观点的主要内容是我对波兰尼在其开创性论文中的论点的解释，因此仅在来源其他文章时才提供参考。