Lecture 4

What is Life?
1944 book by Erwin Schrodinger
What is What is Life?
A little general-reader book published
by Erwin Schrodinger in 1944
An influential book on biology written
by a theoretical physicist
Prominent scientists who said they
were inspired by the book include
Crick and Watson, joint discoverers of
the structure of DNA in 1953
Born in Vienna
Father, botanists; mother, d.
of chemistry professor
1914 Habilitation (Post PhD);
1921 Full Physics Prof. at Breslau
1925 Prof. in Berlin
1926 discovered Schrodinger equation
Foundation of quantum mechanics
1933 Nobel Prize for Physics (with Dirac
and Pauli)
Erwin Schrodinger (1887-1961)
(1933)
Erwin Schrodinger (after 1933)
1933 Left Germany for opposi-
tion to Nazis anti-semitism
Declined permanent positions
at Oxford (1933) and Princeton
(1934) for personal reasons
Returned to Austria 1936
Fled Austria 1938 to England/Holland
1940-1956 Institute of Advanced Studies,
Dublin, Ireland
1956 returned to Vienna
Background
The book is based on lectures delivered
at Trinity College, Dublin, in February 1943
Already known in biology:
chromosome, nucleus, cross-over, mitosis,
meiosis, genes are units of heredity
Known in physics
Statistical mechanics, quantum mechanics
Delbruck*: "the gene is a polymerof
atomic structures."
*Physicist turned biologist
Nobel prize in physiology and medicine 1969
Chapter I: Order from disorder
Many physical laws on a
large scale are due to
chaos on a small scale
Thermal motion
Life greatly depends on order
Master code of a living
organism has to consist of
a large number of atoms
Chapter II & III
Hereditary Mechanism and Mutation
Mutation is important to evolution
Genes must be small and
permanent
Mutations are single, discrete events
In modern terms: it is digital
Survival rate small if mutations are
simultaneous
Mutation is caused by ionization
Quantum mechanical, not classical
Chapter IV
Quantum-mechanical evidence
Genes are almost forever, why?
Thermal motion generates
ceaseless small changes
If mutation can be caused by
accumulation of small changes,
then genes cannot be permanent
Therefore mutations are
quantum changes
Quantum, not classical
Habsburger
Lippe
Chapter V
The Aperiodic Crystal
Genetic material is large
molecule that does not
repeat itself
If there are n different
bases and molecule is L
bases long, then there are
n
L
different molecule
For example: 4
100
=10
60
Mutation cause by
ionization of molecule
Delbruck model
Physics: natural direction is from order
to disorder
Biology: order seems to be maintained
forever
Hence there may be other laws of
physics
Schrodinger did not really believe so
Chapter VI
Order and Disorder
Chapter VII
Is Life Based on the Law of Physic?
Schrodinger emphasize again nature is
order to disorder, but observes
biology/life seems to be order to order,
he therefore raises the question given
above
He answers is affirmative. Yes, because:
Part of the reason is quantum physics
Another part is because life operates near low
temperature, with little thermal fluctuation
Epilogue
On determinism and free will
Schrodinger observes:
The body functions according to Natures
law
But his mind controls his motion
Hence he command Natures law
Hence I am God Almighty
Note: The 1956 Schrodinger book Mind and
Matter has had only a small impact.
Impact of What is Life?
Inspired many great scientists
Francis Crick and J ames Watson
Codiscoverer of structure of DNA; 1962 Nobel Physiology or
Medicine
Praised by others
Max Delbruck
1968 Nobel Physiology or Medicine
Criticized by others
LinusPauling
1953 Nobel Chemistry, 1962 Peace
Max Perutz
Teacher of Watson and Crick
1962 Nobel Chemistry
Now generally viewed as ranking among the
important books in biology; greatly inspired
interdisciplinary research
How right was What is Life?
Genetic material is a large, linear Aperiodic
crystal
Correct. It is a DNA sequence
A gene is a few thousand atoms
Correct
Natural selection acts on quantum changes on
aperiodic crystal, hence huge diversity
Almost correct, change quantum to discrete
Order to disorder countered by negative
entropy
Incorrect
No fundamentally new physics needed to explain
biology; importance of complexity
Probably mostly correct
What is Life? The Next Fifty Years
1993 Conference in Dublin celebrating
50th anniversary of publication of
What is Life?
Book published 1995, MP Murphy & LAJ
ONiell, Editors
Articles by prominent scientist including
M. Eigen, 1967 Nobel Chemistry
J Maynard-Smith, game theory, sex evolution
SJ Gould Wonderful Life
R Penrose, Relativity, Penrose (aperiodic) tiling
S Kauffman At Home in the Universe
Some remarks from
The Next Fifty Years
Evolution is more than Darwinian gradualism;
contingency is also important (SJ Gould)
Understanding genes is not sufficient to
compute the egg (L Wolpert)
Neither order-to-order nor code-embedding
genome is necessary for the development
of life (S Kauffman)
RNA before genetic code (J M Smith & E
Szathmary)
New physics needed to understand Mind (R
Penrose)
What is Life? (Schrodinger)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_is_Life%3F_(Schr%C3%B6dinger)
(Wikipedia)
http://www.genetics.org/cgi/content/full/153/3/1071#Delbrucks_model
1999 Review on Genetics by KR Dronamraju
http://www.human-nature.com/nibbs/04/erwin.html
Short 2004 review Human Nature Review by J F Derry
What is Life? The next fifty years(MP Murphy &
LAJ ONeil)
http://www.cambridge.org/uk/catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=05214550
9X
Short publishers (Cambridge U Press) review
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/opinion/science-forecasts/
New Scientist: Brilliant minds forecast the next 50 years
http://books.google.com/books?id=WLytw85VzNEC&dq=what+is+life+the
+next+fifty+year
Google search with comments and sample pages
Readable links