Mechanism

Mechanism may refer to:

  • Mechanism (engineering), rigid bodies connected by joints in order to accomplish a desired force and/or motion transmission
  • Mechanism (biology), explaining how a feature is created
  • Mechanism (philosophy), a theory that all natural phenomena can be explained by physical causes
  • Mechanism (sociology), a theory that all social phenomena can be explained by the existence of a deterministic mechanism
  • Mechanism (band), a death metal band from Canada

Famous quotes containing the word mechanism:

    “When one of us dies of cancer, loses her mind, or commits suicide, we must not blame her for her inability to survive an ongoing political mechanism bent on the destruction of that human being. Sanity remains defined simply by the ability to cope with insane conditions.”
    —Ana Castillo (b. 1953)

    “A mechanism of some kind stands between us and almost every act of our lives.”
    —Sarah Patton Boyle, U.S. civil rights activist and author. The Desegregated Heart, part 3, ch. 2 (1962)

    “I’ve never known a Philadelphian who wasn’t a downright “character;” possibly a defense mechanism resulting from the dullness of their native habitat.”
    —Anita Loos (1888–1981)