Cell, Physics, Philosophy

While the microscope has expanded the scope of Physics, it has also exposed its limits.  For, among its discoveries has been the Cell, which, as a discrete unity of a manifold, one inherent capacity of which is self-replication, seems irreducible to any laws of Physics, Modern or Ancient.  The Cell seems to pose a challenge to also Spinoza's doctrine.  For, a Cell is either Substance itself, or a Mode of Substance.  But, since there is only one Substance in the doctrine, but there plainly exists a great number of Cells, of varying complexity, the former cannot be the case.  On the other hand, that a Mode is Cellular is not immediately incoherent, but still requires some adjustments of the doctrine.  For example, that equivalence might entail that the dynamic immanent creativity of Substance is essentially Modular, with Extension more accurately a progressive creation of Modes, expanding like the process of Emanation that some scholars believe is the inspiration for the doctrine.  But even if such adjustments are feasible, left unexplained is the converse of the problem that confronts Physics--how inanimate entities are derived from an animate one such as a Cell.  Bergson's attempted explanation--that Life degenerates--leaves unaccounted for why such a fate can befall a force that is infinitely persistent, which would require an additional principle, e. g. Entropy.  So, the microscope has led to a discovery that is problematic for both Physics and Philosophy.