dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaBiology and Thermodynamics: Seemingly-Opposite Phenomena in Search of a Unified Paradigm
| Authors | Shahar Dolev, Avshalom C. Elitzur |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | physics/0012036 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0012036 |
| Journal | The Einstein Quarterly: Journal of Biology and Medicine, 15 (1998), pp. 24-33 |
Abstract
It is probably not a coincidence that two of the pioneers of thermodynamics, Helmholtz and Mayer, were physicians. Thermodynamics studies the transformations of energy, and such transformations ceaselessly take place in all living systems (probably with important differences between the states of health and disease). Moreover, thermodynamics studies the elusive notions of order and disorder, which are also, respectively, the very hallmarks of life and death. These similarities suggest that thermodynamics might provide a unifying paradigm for many life sciences, explaining the multitude of life's manifestations on the basis of a few basic physical principles. In this article we introduce some basic thermodynamic concepts and point out their usefulness for the biologist and the physician. We hope to show that thermodynamics enables looking at the riddles of life from a new perspective and asking some new fruitful questions.
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"abstract": "It is probably not a coincidence that two of the pioneers of thermodynamics,\nHelmholtz and Mayer, were physicians. Thermodynamics studies the\ntransformations of energy, and such transformations ceaselessly take place in\nall living systems (probably with important differences between the states of\nhealth and disease). Moreover, thermodynamics studies the elusive notions of\norder and disorder, which are also, respectively, the very hallmarks of life\nand death. These similarities suggest that thermodynamics might provide a\nunifying paradigm for many life sciences, explaining the multitude of life\u0027s\nmanifestations on the basis of a few basic physical principles. In this article\nwe introduce some basic thermodynamic concepts and point out their usefulness\nfor the biologist and the physician. We hope to show that thermodynamics\nenables looking at the riddles of life from a new perspective and asking some\nnew fruitful questions.",
"arxiv_id": "physics/0012036",
"authors": [
"Shahar Dolev",
"Avshalom C. Elitzur"
],
"categories": [
"physics.bio-ph",
"q-bio"
],
"journal_ref": "The Einstein Quarterly: Journal of Biology and Medicine, 15\n (1998), pp. 24-33",
"title": "Biology and Thermodynamics: Seemingly-Opposite Phenomena in Search of a Unified Paradigm",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0012036"
},
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