To THE STUDENT :
Until the mid 1800s it was not clear to what extent the laws of physics and chemistry, which were formulated from the observed behavior of inanimate matter, could be applied to living matter. It was certainly evident that on the large scale the laws were applicable. Animals are clearly subject to the same laws of motion as inanimate objects. The question of applicability arose on a more basic level. Living organisms are very complex. Even a virus, which is one of the simplest biological organisms, consists of millions of interacting atoms. A cell, which is the basic building block of tissue, contains on the average 1014 atoms. Living organisms exhibit properties not found in inanimate objects. They grow, reproduce, and decay. These phenomena are so different from the predictable properties of inanimate matter that many scientists in the early 19th century believed that different laws governed the structure and organization molecules in living matter. Even the physical origin of organic molecules was in question. These molecules tend to be larger and more complex than molecules obtained from inorganic sources. It was thought that the large molecules found in living matter could be produced only by living organisms through a “vital force” that could not be explained by the existing laws of physics. This concept was disproved in 1828 when Friedrich W¨ohler synthesized an organic substance, urea, from inorganic chemicals. Soon thereafter many other organic molecules were synthesized without the intervention of biological organisms. Today most scientists believe that there is no special vital force residing in organic substances. Living organisms are governed by
the laws of physics on all levels.
the laws of physics on all levels.
0 on: "Physics in Biology and Medicine"
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