Around 71% of the Earth's surface is covered in water. In this Very Short Introduction John Finney explores the science of water, its structure and remarkable properties, and its vital role for life on Earth.

Life is produced by the interplay of water and biomolecules. This book deals with the physicochemical aspects of such life phenomena produced by water and biomolecules, and addresses topics including "Protein Dynamics and Functions", "Protein and DNA Folding", and "Protein Amyloidosis". All sections have been written by internationally recognized front-line researchers. The idea for this book was born at the 5th International Symposium "Water and Biomolecules", held in Nara city, Japan, in 2008.

A unified overview of the dynamical properties of water and its unique and diverse role in biological and chemical processes.

Black & white print. Concepts of Biology is designed for the typical introductory biology course for nonmajors, covering standard scope and sequence requirements. The text includes interesting applications and conveys the major themes of biology, with content that is meaningful and easy to understand. The book is designed to demonstrate biology concepts and to promote scientific literacy.

This book embraces all physiochemical aspects of the structure and molecular dynamics of water, focusing on its role in biological objects, e.g. living cells and tissue, and in the formation of functionally active structures of biological molecules and their ensembles. Water is the single most abundant chemical found in all living things. It offers a detailed look into the latest modern physical methods for studying the molecular structure and dynamics of the water and provides a critical analysis of the existing literature data on the properties of water in biological objects. Water as a chemical reagent and as a medium for the formation of conditions for enzymatic catalysis is a core focus of this book. Although well suited for active researchers, the book as a whole, as well as each chapter on its own, can be used as fundamental reference material for graduate and undergraduate students throughout chemistry, physics, biophysics and biomedicine.

The medical MRI community is by far the largest user of diffusion NMR techniques and this book captures the current surge of methods and provides a primary source to aid adoption in this field. There is a trend to adapting the more advanced diffusion encoding sequences developed by NMR researchers within the fields of porous media, chemical engineering, and colloid science to medical research. Recently published papers indicate great potential for improved diagnosis of the numerous pathological conditions associated with changes of tissue microstructure that are invisible to conventional diffusion MRI. This book disseminates these recent developments to the wider community of MRI researchers and clinicians. The chapters cover the theoretical basis, hardware and pulse sequences, data analysis and validation, and recent applications aimed at promoting further growth in the field. This is a fast moving field and chapters are written by key MRI scientists that have contributed to the successful translation of the advanced diffusion NMR methods to the context of medical MRI, from global locations.

The search for life in the solar system and beyond has to date been governed by a model based on what we know about life on Earth (terran life). Most of NASA's mission planning is focused on locations where liquid water is possible and emphasizes searches for structures that resemble cells in terran organisms. It is possible, however, that life exists that is based on chemical reactions that do not involve carbon compounds, that occurs in solvents other than water, or that involves oxidation-reduction reactions without oxygen gas. To assist NASA incorporate this possibility in its efforts to search for life, the NRC was asked to carry out a study to evaluate whether nonstandard biochemistry might support life in solar system and conceivable extrasolar environments, and to define areas to guide research in this area. This book presents an exploration of a limited set of hypothetical chemistries of life, a review of current knowledge concerning key questions or hypotheses about nonterran life, and suggestions for future research.

This e-book introduces the reader to biomolecules and describes the experimental and theoretical aspects of their micro- and nano-scale motion in water. Particular emphasis is given to their transport in engineered micro-environments where they are driven by externally imposed electric fields. Envisaged application technologies of this wide-ranging science involve healthcare, food provisioning, environmental services, etc. The e-book is generally intended for undergraduate students studying chemical, life, physical and engineering sciences, and also interdisciplinary researchers.

Water and Biological Macromolecules presents an excellent description of the structural aspects of water molecules around biological macromolecules. Topics discussed include the properties of water in solid and liquid states; proteins, nucleic acids, polysaccharides, and lipids; and theoretical approaches for understanding the macroscopic observations and integrating microscopic descriptions. The nature and roles of hydration forces in macromolecular complexation and cell-cell interactions are explained, in addition to phenomena such as entropy-enthalpy compensation and the thermodynamic treatment of water bridging. Water and Biological Macromolecules will be a valuable reference for biophysicists, biochemists, and macromolecular biologists.