ABSTRACT
The discovery of a mechanism typically begins with a puzzling phenomenon. A goal in discovering a mechanism is to convert an incomplete sketchy representation into an adequate one for the purpose at hand. For convenience, we can divide the mechanism discovery process into at least four stages: characterizing the phenomenon, constructing a schema, evaluating the schema, and revising the schema. These stages are pursued in parallel and in interaction with one another. Localization is often crucial, clue in the construction stage of the search for mechanisms, as William Bechtel and Robert Richardson argue. Modular subassembly is the strategy of putting together known types of parts, namely modules of entities and activities that carry out particular kinds of mechanism role function. Forward and backward chaining both contributed to the discovery of the mechanism of protein synthesis in the 1950s and 60s. Bechtel uses case studies from circadian rhythm studies to show how computational modeling contributes to the discovery of complex mechanisms.
