THE TWO-SCALE FRACTAL DIMENSION: A UNIFYING PERSPECTIVE TO METABOLIC LAW

Abstract

The laws governing life should be as simple as possible; however, theoretical investigations into allometric laws have become increasingly complex, with the long-standing debate over the scaling exponent in allometric laws persisting. This paper re-examines the same biological phenomenon using two different scales. On a macroscopic scale, a cell surface appears smooth, but on a smaller scale, it exhibits a fractal-like porous structure. To elaborate, a few examples are given. Employing the two-scale fractal theory, we theoretically predict and experimentally verify the scaling exponent values for basal, active, and maximal metabolic rates. This paper concludes that Rubner’s 2/3 law and Kleiber’s 3/4 law are two facets of the same truth, manifested across different scale approximations.