The bridge between biology and physics

Biology studies life in its variety and complexity. It describes how organisms go about getting food, communicating, sensing the environment, and repro- ducing. On the other hand, physics looks for mathe- matical laws of nature and makes detailed predictions about the forces that drive idealized systems. Span-

ning the distance be- tween the complexity of life and the simplicity of physical laws is the challenge of biophysics. Biophysicists study life at every level, from at-

oms and molecules to cells, organisms, and environ- ments.

Biophysics discovers such questions as how at- oms are arranged to work in DNA and proteins. Pro- tein molecules perform the body’s chemical reactions. They push and pull in the muscles that move your limbs. Proteins make the parts of your eyes, ears, nose, and skin that sense your environment. They turn food into energy and light into vision. They are your immunity to illness. Proteins repair what is broken in- side of cells, and regulate growth. They fire the elec- trical signals in your brain. They read the DNA blue- prints in your body and copy the DNA for future gen- erations. So, biophysicists discover how proteins work. Understanding these differences in people’s re- spond to proteins opens new possibilities in drug de- sign, diagnosis, and disease control.

Biophysics is a wellspring of innovation for our high-tech economy. The applications of biophysics depend on society’s needs. In the 20th century, great progress was made in treating disease. Biophysics helped to create powerful vaccines against infectious diseases. It described and controlled diseases of me-

pacemakers. Biophysicists invented instruments for detecting, purifying, imaging, and manipulating chemicals and materials.

Nowadays society is facing physical and biologi- cal problems of global proportions. How will we con- tinue to get sufficient energy? How can we feed the world’s population? How do we remediate global warming? How do we preserve biological diversity? How do we secure clean and plentiful water? Biophys- ics provides the insight and technologies for meeting these challenges, based on the principles of physics and the mechanisms of biology.

Biophysics discovers how to modify microorgan- isms for biofuel (replacing gasoline and diesel fuel) and bioelectricity (replacing petroleum products and coal for producing electricity). Biophysics discovers the biological cycles of heat, light, water, carbon, ni- trogen, oxygen, heat, and organisms throughout our planet. Biophysics harnesses microorganisms to clean our water and to produce lifesaving drugs.

 

Vocabulary

tabolism, such as diabetes. And biophysics provided both the tools and the understanding for treating the diseases of growth as cancers. Today we are learning more about the biology of health and society is deeply concerned about the health of our planet.

Advanced instruments created by biophysicists provide the life-saving treatment methods of kidney dialysis, radiation therapy, cardiac defibrillators, and

advanced arrange (v) bioelectricity biofuel

biological diversity challenge complexity detailed predictions

detect (v) DNA blueprint face (v)

fire the signals force generation image (v)

law

lifesaving drugs manipulate (v) perform (v) preserve (v) pull (v)

purify (v) push (v) regulate (v)

remediate (v) repair (v) respond (v) secure (v) simplicity society’s needs variety

7) Передовые инструменты, созданные био- физиками, были применены для повышения эф- фективности работы.

8) В последнее время человечество чаще стало сталкиваться с экологическими проблемами, приобретающими глобальный характер.

 

4. Continue the associative chain:

Biophysics – atoms – proteins - …

2. Try to explain the following terms:

Kidney dialysis, radiation therapy, cardiac defi- brillator, pacemaker.

 

3. Translate the sentences with the words from your vocabulary.

1) Важнейшей задачей любого государства является удовлетворение потребностей общест- ва.

2) Лекция «Величие и простота законов Ньютона» была прочитана 19 сентября в Большой демонстрационной аудитории.

3) Белки регулируют рост клетки.

4) Без сохранения биологического разнообра- зия невозможно устойчивое развитие биосферы.

5) Существуют проекты, направленные на по- лучение биотоплива из целлюлозы (cellulose) и различного типа органических отходов.

6) Никотин посылает в мозг ложные сигналы

о сытости.

 

5. Answer the questions according to the text.

1) What does biology study?

2) What does physics study?

3) How does biophysics connect biology and physics?

4) What does biophysics discover about pro- teins?

5) Name the functions of proteins in our body.

6) What progress did biophysics make for soci- ety’s needs in the 20th century?

7) What instruments or tool did biophysicists create?

8) What problems does modern society face?

9) Why does society need biofuel and bioelec- tricity?

10) Why does biophysics harness microorgan- isms?

 

6. Correct the order of the ideas according to how they were mentioned in the text.

1) Biophysics in the source of economical inno- vations.

2) Modern society faces many environmental problems.

3) Biophysics is the mixture of biology and physics.

4) Proteins’ work is being discovered by bio- physics.

5) Biofuel, bioelectricity, cleanup of water are the issues of biophysics.

6) Many life-saving tools are created by bio- physics.

 

7. Write a summary of the text in your own words. Orally enlarge this summary and retell the text.

8. As innovations come out of physics and biol- ogy labs, biophysicists find new areas to explore where they can apply their expertise, create new tools, and learn new things. Biophysicists ask questions, such as:

How do protein machines work? Even though they are millions of times smaller than everyday ma- chines, molecular machines work on the same princi- ples. They use energy to do work. The kinesin ma- chine shown here is carrying a load as it walks along a track. Biophysics reveals how each step is powered forward.

How do systems of nerve cells communicate? Biophysicists invented colored protein tags for the

chemicals used by cells. Each cell takes on a different color as it uses the tagged chemicals, making it possi- ble to trace its many pathways.

 

Answer the following questions from the point of view of biophysicist.

· How do proteins pack DNA into viruses?

· How do viruses invade cells?

· How do plants harness sunlight to make food?

 

9. Remember Present Perfect tense. Insert the following markers in the correct place.