Biological Physics

Undergraduate / Graduate

This course will focus on unifying problems and themes found across biology that benefit from a quantitative approach. Questions covered include: How do evolved non-equilibrium mechanisms get around the constraints of equilibrium thermodynamics? What are the minimal requirements for matter to become life by replicating and evolving? How do living systems partition limited resources (energy, matter) acquired from the environment? How do living systems exploit dynamical systems behaviors to store and retrieve memories of past environments on different timescales? No specialized biological knowledge assumed.