Homeostasis is the preservation of balance in nature

Homeostasis is the ability of an organic system to maintain a relative constancy of the dynamic balance of its internal environment. This is a term of Greek origin. It has a complex composition, formed by two words - homoios (like) and stasis (state). Mechanisms of self-regulation, providing physiological constancy, are called homeostatic. Depending on the internal composition of the open system and its interaction with the environment, the fixed supports of such mechanisms may have different properties:

- Conditional instability of the system ensures maximum adaptability to necessary conditions;

- The desire to maintain a balance helps maintain a relative balance of the structure and functional organization of the system;

- The effect of unpredictability allows us to methodically achieve new results that contribute to the continuous improvement of self-regulating factors.

Since homeostasis is a condition based on interchange with the environment, such systems can have two kinds of feedback: negative and positive. The negative type of feedback is reflected in the reaction of the system, changing the aspiration of change in the opposite direction. Feedback helps maintain a constant state of the system, helping to maintain equilibrium. An example of such a connection is thermoregulation in the human body. Homeostasis is a complex process of interaction of all the components of each individual system. When the body temperature rises or falls, the hypothalamus and skin thermoreceptors immediately register this change. This signal is transmitted to the brain, which causes a reverse response of the body - a decrease or increase in temperature.

Positive feedback is expressed in increasing the change in the variable. Such a connection causes the effect of destabilization, therefore it does not contribute to the process. It is much less common in the functioning of organic systems, but it also has its significance. Homeostasis is A system that requires a combination of both types of feedback. For example, the limiting electrical potential of nerve cells causes the generation of an even greater action potential. Thus, positive feedback is necessary for the transition to a new state of homeostasis. Such changes are called metastability. An example of such changes is the increase in nutrients in the transparent water of rivers, leading to a reaction of the turbidity of the reservoir and the overgrowing of its channel by algae.

The homeostasis of the ecosystem is a dynamic balance of the ecology of nature, carried out through the regular renewal of its basic elements. The concept of equilibrium in nature was developed by the American botanist and ecologist Frederick Clements. In addition to the ecosystem balance, biological, cellular homeostasis, and equilibrium in the human body are distinguished. This ability should be understood as a general characteristic of many processes that constantly interact with each other.