From Theoretical Physics To Biology

Quantum physics provides the concepts and their mathematical formalization that lend themselves to describe important properties of biological networks topology, such as vulnerability to external stress and their dynamic response to changing physiological conditions. A theory of networks enhanced with mathematical concepts and tools of quantum physics opens a new area of biological physics, the one of systems biological physics.

The purpose of the book is to give a survey of the physics that is relevant for biological applications, and also to discuss what kind of biology needs physics. The book gives a broad account of basic physics, relevant for the applications and various applications from properties of proteins to processes in the cell to wider themes such as the brain, the origin of life and evolution. It also considers general questions of common interest such as reductionism, determinism and randomness, where the physics view often is misunderstood. The subtle balance between order and disorder is a repeated theme appearing in many contexts. There are descriptive parts which shall be sufficient for the comprehension of general ideas, and more detailed, formalistic parts for those who want to go deeper, and see the ideas expressed in terms of mathematical formulas. - Describes how physics is needed for understanding basic principles of biology - Discusses the delicate balance between order and disorder in living systems - Explores how physics play a role high biological functions, such as learning and thinking

What is the physics of life and why does it matter? The essays in this book probe this question, celebrating modern biology's vibrant dialog with theoretical physics — a scientific adventure in which biological understanding is enriched by physical theory without losing its own inherent traditions and perspectives. The book explores organic complexity and self-organization through research applications to embryology, cell biology, behavioral neuroscience, and evolution. The essays will excite the interest of physics students in thinking about biology's “grand challenges”, in part by means of self-contained introductions to theoretical computer science, symmetry methods in bifurcation theory, and evolutionary games. Seasoned investigators in both the physical and life sciences will also find challenging ideas and applications presented in this volume. This is a Print On Demand title. We no longer stock the original but will recreate a copy for you. While all efforts are made to ensure that quality is the same as the original, there may be differences in some areas of the design and packaging. Contents:Foundations:Emergence in Physics and Biology (L E H Trainor)Holism and Reduction (C J Lumsden)Complexity: A Pluralistic Approach (W A M Brandts)Dynamics, Complexity and Computation (P A Dufort & C J Lumsden)Development: Field Approaches to Pattern Formation:Vector Field Models of Morphogenesis (W A M Brandts & J Totafurno)Symmetry Breaking Bifurcations (T M Hart & L E H Trainor)Development: Principles of Self-Organization:Generic Dynamics of Morphogenesis (B Goodwin)Toward a Model of Growth and Form in Living Systems (F Cummings)Living Organization, the Coherence of Organisms and the Morphogenetic Field (M W Ho et al.)Is Spatial Pattern Formation Homologous in Unicellular and Multicellular Organisms? (J Frankel)Cellular and Organismic Biology:Statistical Mechanics of the Main Phase Transition in Lipid Bilayers (F P Jones & P Tevlin)Multi-Neuron Interactions in Neural Network Models of Associative Memory (A E Busch & L E H Trainor)Network Hierarchies in Neural Organization, Development and Pathology (J P Sutton)Category Switching — A Neural Network Approach (L E H Trainor et al.)Evolution:A Model of Molecular Evolution Based on the Statistical Analysis of Nucleotide Sequences (L Luo)Codon Space: Exploring the Origins and Development of the Genetic Code (L E H Trainor et al.)Evolution of Development: The Shuffling of Ancient Modules by Ubiquitous Bureaucracies (E W Larsen)Game Theory in Biology (G W A Rowe) Readership: Physicial scientists, biologists, engineers, applied mathematicians and philosophers. keywords:Holism and Reductionism;Complexity;Symmetry;Emergent Property;Patterns;Neural Interactions;Statistical Models;Game Theory;Biology;Morphogenesis;Morphogens;Pattern Formation;Development;Epithelia Folding;Biological Modeling;Complexity;Physical Theory;Biological Regulation;Pattern Formation;Nonlinear Dynamics;Evolution;Developmental Field;Neural Networks;Collective Behavior;Genetic Code;Emergence;Reductionism;Holism;Self-Organization;Bifurcation Theory;Morphogenetic Field;Regeneration;Phase Transitions in Bilayers;Task Switching;Nucleotide Sequences;Molecular Evolution “The important issue here is not what physics theory has done for biology (which is not very much), but what it can do in the future, and to this end the book does a marvellous job of defining the arena.” Nature “… the scope of the articles is broad … The book should be of interest to scientists coming from biological, physical and mathematical sciences.”Bulletin for Mathematical Biology

Quantum physics provides the concepts and their mathematical formalization that lend themselves to describe important properties of biological networks topology, such as vulnerability to external stress and their dynamic response to changing physiological conditions. A theory of networks enhanced with mathematical concepts and tools of quantum physics opens a new area of biological physics, the one of systems biological physics.