Life on the Edge review – the weird world of quantum biology explained

The scent of an orange, a robin on the wing – nothing could be more festive. But if you think such simple delights are born of simple processes, think again. For as Jim Al-Khalili and Johnjoe McFadden reveal in Life on the Edge, they are rooted in mind-bending physics that made even Einstein think twice: quantum mechanics. While everything is made up of electrons, protons and other particles that obey the bizarre rules of quantum mechanics (among them, the possibility of particles existing in two places simultaneously), collisions, vibrations and so on within a material generally prevent such “trickery” affecting an object as a whole. As the authors point out: “The weird quantum stuff that happens at the level of the very small doesn’t usually make a difference to the big stuff like cars or toasters that we see and use every day.”read more-http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/14/life-on-the-edge-jim-al-khalili-review-weird-world-of-quantum-biology