1871-1945

American physiologist who coined the word "homeostasis" to describe the conditions that maintain the constancy of the interior environment of the body. Cannon explained that homeostasis does not refer to a fixed and unchanging state but to a complex, relatively constant condition. As a physiologist, Cannon investigated the mechanisms that allow the body to maintain this state. Cannon helped to popularize ideas about physiological regulatory mechanisms through his voluminous writings, including his best-known book, The Wisdom of the Body (1932).