''Life and Energy'' is a 1962 book by Isaac Asimov. It is about the biological and physical

world In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

, and their contrasts and comparisons. Thus the book is divided into two sections, which is separated by further sub-sections (i.e. chapters): 1) energy; 2) body. In order to accomplish its goal, the book starts with "layman" discussions about energy and how these can be used to single out human from other living systems, or even living systems from non-living matter, what differentiates a rock from an oyster, and finishes with advanced concepts, how living systems are able to "produce" energy.

First Chapters: Energy

The first chapters covers the common questions of the distinctions between

living Living or The Living may refer to: Common meanings *Life, a condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic objects and dead organisms ** Living species, one that is not extinct *Personal life, the course of an individual human's life * ...

and inanimate objects.

Following Chapters

Asimov then explains in a step by step manner about the physical world first through slow, but interesting chapters. He writes about the effect and major role of the

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

and advance of

man A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromo ...

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames a ...

and heat, he tells about

thermodynamics Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with heat, work, and temperature, and their relation to energy, entropy, and the physical properties of matter and radiation. The behavior of these quantities is governed by the four laws of th ...

(and its laws), he recollects the thoughts of previous scientists, and their painstaking works, and finally, the

quantum theory Quantum theory may refer to: Science *Quantum mechanics, a major field of physics *Old quantum theory, predating modern quantum mechanics * Quantum field theory, an area of quantum mechanics that includes: ** Quantum electrodynamics ** Quantum ...

and radiation, which has revolutionised physics and

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and Reproducibility, reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in me ...

. An explanation of

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...

and basic chemistry laws and features are also included. The physical section ends here, and continues into biology. He now continues on with special chemistry, and leaves behind physics. From this, the book leads into the functions of

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products ...

amino acid Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although hundreds of amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the alpha-amino acids, which comprise proteins. Only 22 alpha a ...

s, cells, the body as a whole, and the process of the cells and organs to work together to become one.

Publication

*''Life and Energy'' (1962)

External links

Book review
1962 non-fiction books Books by Isaac Asimov Science books Doubleday (publisher) books {{science-book-stub