Environmental Factors in Molecular Modelling

Abstract

The most revolutionary result of quantum theory is also the one most commonly ignored by some theoreticians. It is quantum theory that shows how everything in the world is part of everything else, without boundaries and without isolated parts. However, in applications outside of quantum field theory, it is almost invariably an isolated system which is chosen for analysis. In chemistry it could be an isolated electron, an isolated atom, an isolated molecule, or an isolated crystal. It is easy to believe that this assumption would not introduce significant errors, and therefore difficult to initiate serious debate of the issue. Fact is that an isolated electron has no spin, an isolated atom has no size, and an isolated molecule has no shape. It follows that all of the important familiar properties of chemically significant entities arise through interaction with the environment.