Stability and reliability of ontogenesis

Abstract Thermodynamic considerations and experimental data are provided which substantiate energy criteria of reliability and stability of development. The minimum total oxygen consumption over some period of ontogenesis corresponds to the most favourable temperature conditions of development of poikilotermic animals. Another method of determining the stability and reliability of ontogenesis is developed using the notion of the bound dissipation function, which can be determined by study of the discrepancies between direct and indirect calorimetry data.