Quantum Physics and Life

This book reveals glimpses of how the quantum physics of atoms and molecules influences, and even controls, the way our cells function and how we and our fellow animals interact with our environment. Simply put, how birds fly and why grass grows.Certainly, biochemistry and molecular biology are the foundations for the biology of living cells, but there is more—quantum coherence and entanglement influencing the functioning of proteins and enzymes, and strictly speaking, without the quantum phenomena we wouldn’t even be here.In the end, however, this book is based on the solid ground of science, presenting the many fascinating phenomena of how quantum physics makes life possible without any unwarranted mystification.

Ingemar Ernberg is a professor at Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden, doing research on cancer and cell biology. Since more than 15 years, he is leading a popular lecture series on "What is life? The future of biology."Göran Johansson is a professor of applied quantum physics at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. He is currently active in the WACQT quantum computer project.Tomas Lindblad is a Swedish science journalist, publishing his work with Sveriges Radio, the National Swedish Public Service radio company, and several other outlets.Joar Svanvik is a professor emeritus of surgery at Linköping University. He has practiced surgery in Sweden at the University of California San Francisco, in Kenya, and as a shipboard doctor in Antarctica. Currently, he is active at the Transplant Institute, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden. Göran Wendin is a professor of theoretical physics at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. He has coordinated seven major EU projects on neuromorphic and quantum computing and is engaged in current and future Swedish and EU quantum computer missions.