Question:

Suppose that we have two sets of scatter-free observations on weights, rather than on structural volumes, $\{t_i, W(t_i)\}_{i=1}^n$, for two (sufficiently different) known food levels X₁ and X₂. Given is that weights relate to the structural volumes as (cf (2.6) at {31} for E_R = 0 and E = f E_m and $d_E = [E_m] w_E/ \mu_E$)

W = (d_V + f d_E) V

where d_V and d_E are (unknown) parameters. What are the dimensions of d_V and d_E and which parameters are now theoretically estimatable? Can you give a direct and simple argument why the parameters $\dot{v}$ is not estimatable?

Note: both structure and reserve contribute to weight, and we have no apriori rule to quantify their contributions; only weights can be maesured in a straightforward way. So data on weights have less information than data on structural volume.