64. Rhythms. 64·1 The theory of percipient objects
is beyond the scope of this work of which the aim is to
illustrate the principles of natural knowledge by an
examination of the data and experiential laws funda-
mental for physical science. A percipient object is in
some sense beyond nature.

But nature includes life; and the way of conceiving
nature developed in the preceding chapter has its
bearing on biological conceptions as to the sense in
which life can be said to be thus included.

64·2 An object is a characteristic of an event. Such
an object may be in fact a multiple relation between
objects situated in various parts of the whole event. In
this case the quality of the whole is the relationship
between its parts, and the relation between the parts is
the quality of the whole. The whole event being what
it is, its parts have thereby certain defined relations;
and the parts having all the relations which they do
have, it follows that the whole event is what it is. The
whole is explained by a full knowledge of the parts
as situations of objects, and the parts by a full know-
ledge of the whole. Such an object is a pattern.

64·3 The discussion of life in nature has become
canalised along certain conventional lines based upon
the traditional concepts of science. We are aware of
living objects. But the phrase 'living objects' is mis-
leading; we should more accurately say, 'objects ex-
pressing life,' or 'life-bearing objects.' Namely, the

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