中文摘要：

结构生长现象普遍存在于生物界和非生物界。通过一般化地处理微观组元的复杂相互作用,基于非平衡统计力学,提出以最大流原理作为揭示生长奥秘的基本原理,描述了生长的一般过程,并讨论其在干细胞分化、工业生态系统的形成、城市的发展等相关案例中的应用,力图为从生物到非生物、从自然到社会等诸多领域的生长现象提供统一的描述。

英文摘要：

Structural growth, as always a challenging mystery, prevails in both living and non-living worlds, and relates both with natural sciences and social sciences, Based on a model of a complex dynamical system, a universal physical principle, Maximum Flux Principle （MFP）, is proposed as a fundamental law for structural growth. It is assumed that a dynamical system always tends to follow an optimal process to acquire maximized flux under certain constraints. A general growing process can be seen as complex interactions among microscopic elements from the point of view of non--equilibrium statistical mechanics, An artificial neural networks simulation technique based on the theory is developed to correlate experimental phenomena and data. Typical practical examples as stem cell differentials, formation of eco-industrial systems and urban development are provided. The paper offers a unified description of universal growth phenomena prevailing in diverse fields.