Automatism

Automatism (Gr., 'self-movement'), a term applied to the power of initiating vital processes from within the cell, organ, or organism, independently of any direct or immediate stimulus from without. External conditions produce effects within the living matter which may lie dormant for a time, and only subsequently find expression in activities without apparent external stimulus. The heart of a cold-blooded animal like a tortoise may be isolated from the body without interrupting the beat, which will indeed, in certain conditions, continue for days; the conditions of its activity are contained within itself—it is automatic. The highest form of automatism is that exhibited in the will of man and the higher animals—they can act without direct interference from without. But the word, applied to animal life, is often used of that which is involuntary and merely mechanical; especially indicating the Cartesian doctrine, that animals (other than man) are like automata, mere machines, without either the vegetative or sensitive soul allotted to them by Aristotle. See PHYSIOLOGY, NERVOUS SYSTEM, LIFE.