Memory and relaxation time of biological systems. an analysis of the effect of abortion legalization in italy

Michele Caputo, Fulvia Gloria-Bottini

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DOI: 10.4236/ns.2011.38093                

Abstract

When a population is affected by a new law there is a lag between the date of application of the law and the response of the population; moreover there is a relaxation time after which a steady state is reached. The time to maximum response and the relaxation time may be approximately estimated from the raw data but the mathematical modeling of the data allows a better estimate. The model, when tested on real data, may be used for future laws or, when appropriately adapted, for other biological systems also. In this note the memory based model is tested on the effects of the 1978 law which legalized the abortions in Italy finding the response and the relaxation time. It is shown that Italian population, after the abortion law, has required about 5 years to have the maximum effect and about 10 years to reach stability. The evolution of women life and the changes of the structure of society in Italy is also discussed.

Keywords

Memory; Abortion; Mathematical Model; Live-Born Infant; Population Growth

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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