Molecules, Dynamics, and Life: An Introduction to Self-Organization of Matter (Nonequilibrium Problems in the Physical Sciences and Biology)

This book tells the story of how inert matter can acquire self-organizing and other properties ascribed to life. The author's multidisciplinary approach does not require knowledge of chemistry, physics, or biology on the part of the reader. Part I covers the properties of matter and evolutionary criteria. Part II presents an introduction to the necessary chemical concepts. Part III explains the self-organization of biosystems and the development of organisms. This book describes in the simplest possible manner how inert matter can acquire the self-organizing properties usually attributed to life. It introduces in understandable terms the complex subject of thermodynamics and its various applications to biology and physics.