This is just a very rough analogy for the way in which there might be a hierarchy of levels of causality.
Suppose that you are measuring the forces acting upon a ball (including gravity) as you drop it, throw in the air, etc. The movement of the ball is truly following the laws of motion that pertain to such movement. But with modifications that you don't notice, due to the fact that the earth is rotating on its axis and revolving around the sun. So the actual behavior of the ball is both consistent with the various laws of motion that would, when combined, describe ball's falling or being projected (too bad "missiling" is not a legit word) through the air with gravity and air resistance, etc. acting on them. even though its movement also includes law-abiding modifications caused by the influence of rotation and revolution. The laws describing the former influences (gravity, resistance) are not broken by the laws describing the latter (rotation, revolution). Rather, laws describing the former abstract from the the latter sort of influences. The former laws not deny that other influences may be present.
Something analogous may happen between higher/lower powers in things, or at least in organisms (in the latter case, this analogy may seem to limp in the direction of vitalism, but maybe I can clarify that).
Suppose that you are measuring the forces acting upon a ball (including gravity) as you drop it, throw in the air, etc. The movement of the ball is truly following the laws of motion that pertain to such movement. But with modifications that you don't notice, due to the fact that the earth is rotating on its axis and revolving around the sun. So the actual behavior of the ball is both consistent with the various laws of motion that would, when combined, describe ball's falling or being projected (too bad "missiling" is not a legit word) through the air with gravity and air resistance, etc. acting on them. even though its movement also includes law-abiding modifications caused by the influence of rotation and revolution. The laws describing the former influences (gravity, resistance) are not broken by the laws describing the latter (rotation, revolution). Rather, laws describing the former abstract from the the latter sort of influences. The former laws not deny that other influences may be present.
Something analogous may happen between higher/lower powers in things, or at least in organisms (in the latter case, this analogy may seem to limp in the direction of vitalism, but maybe I can clarify that).
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