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The protein as a physics laboratory

  • I. Dynamics of Proteins and Evolution
  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Physics in Living Matter

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Physics ((LNP,volume 284))

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Abstract

Why should physicists be interested in biomolecules? One reason is that physics and in particular physical techniques have had, and still have, a great impact on biological sciences. A prime example is X-ray diffraction which in the hands of Max Perutz and John Kendrew led to the elucidation of the three-dimensional structure of proteins. A second reason is the fact that proteins are beautifully designed laboratories in which many physics problems can be studied. A few years ago I had dinner with Stan Ulam at the Los Alamos Inn. After telling him about our work he said: “I understand what you are saying. Ask not what physics can do for biology, ask what biology can do for physics.” In these notes I will discuss two areas, complexity and reactions, where experiments on proteins provide new information. Both of these areas link biomolecules to physics and chemistry and both contain many unsolved and challenging problems.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1110 West Green Street, 61801, Urbana, IL

    Hans Frauenfelder

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  1. Hans Frauenfelder
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Editor information

Dionys Baeriswyl Michel Droz Andreas Malaspinas Piero Martinoli

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© 1987 Springer-Verlag

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Frauenfelder, H. (1987). The protein as a physics laboratory. In: Baeriswyl, D., Droz, M., Malaspinas, A., Martinoli, P. (eds) Physics in Living Matter. Lecture Notes in Physics, vol 284. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0009204

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0009204

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-18192-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-47803-4

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