The particles

 

I’ve been thinking about why birth and death happen. When I tried to find an answer, I realized that a different way of looking at it – maybe a simple way of understanding how life forms – could explain it, like this article does.

From a different perspective,

Humans are not only biological but also a manifestation of the fundamental principles of physics and chemistry that led to the development of biology.

we humans are composed of elementary particles, which assemble into atoms. The human body is a complex system with an intricate structure, even though all matter, including ourselves, is made of these fundamental particles. These particles combine to form atoms, and atoms chemically bond with one another to create molecules. These molecules then interact and organize, resulting in cells, which further organize into tissues, then organs, and ultimately a complete body. To sustain this complex structure and its functions, we ingest molecules from our environment as food, even though our own bodies are also built from these fundamental components.

The food molecules we consume undergo metabolic alterations within our bodies, a process analogous in some ways to the molecular transformations in plants, though the specific pathways and purposes differ. We break the chemical bonds within these food molecules, releasing the stored chemical energy, which our bodies utilize for cellular repair, growth, and physical activities. The breakdown products of these molecules are converted into various essential molecules (such as amino acids, glucose, and fatty acids) that are transported by the blood and serve as building blocks for synthesizing new molecules and structures within our bodies. Undigested or unabsorbed portions of the food molecules, along with metabolic waste products, are expelled. In this intricate processing of resources, could we be considered a highly organized system?

Here's a seemingly paradoxical truth: the fundamental particles that constitute matter are not inherently living. We are constructed from non-living components. Interestingly, everything we classify as non-living – rocks, sand, and so on – is also composed of these same fundamental particles. Unlike living organisms, these non-living materials do not require the intake of external matter for energy or to maintain their static structure, which is held together by different types of forces. This is why, upon the death of an organism, the complex molecules that formed its structure break down through decomposition, a series of chemical reactions that rearrange the constituent atoms. Through this process, these atoms are not destroyed but are released and become available to participate in other chemical combinations and cycles within the environment. This aligns with the principle of conservation of mass and energy. As these cycles continue, these atoms become incorporated into new molecules and structures.

Readers might now ponder: if our bodies are constructed from atoms, which contain a tremendous amount of energy bound within their mass (as described by E=mc²), why do we need to continually ingest more matter for energy and building blocks?

Science explains that while the potential energy within the mass of our atoms is immense, our bodies lack the mechanisms to directly access and utilize this form of energy for biological processes. Instead, we rely on the chemical energy stored in the bonds of molecules, which is released and harnessed through specific metabolic pathways. Therefore, despite being made of fundamental particles with inherent energy, the stark reality is that we must continuously obtain chemical energy and molecular building blocks from our environment to sustain life.

It’s a hypothetical question: what if the energy within the mass of our atoms could be effectively utilized?

One more question arise:Is life is interplay between particles?