Scientists make stunning discovery that could help explain why life exists– www.sciencedaily.com
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EXCERPT:
Imagine a universe where stars still shine, planets still form, and water exists, but liquids are so thick that living cells can barely function. Even with the chemical ingredients for life, the conditions might make living organisms impossible.
Scientists have uncovered a remarkable connection between the fundamental laws of physics and the ability of life to exist. Their findings suggest that even relatively small changes to some of the universe’s most basic physical constants could dramatically alter how liquids flow, potentially preventing essential biological processes from taking place.
The discovery, detailed in a study published in Science Advances, came from physicist Kostya Trachenko at Queen Mary University of London. His theoretical analysis identified an additional constraint on the values of fundamental physical constants: They must permit liquids to move in ways that support life within and between cells….
Trachenko explained the surprising connection:
“Understanding how water flows in a cup turns out to be closely related to the grand challenge to figure out fundamental constants. Life processes in and between living cells require motion and it is viscosity that sets the properties of this motion. If fundamental constants change, viscosity would change too impacting life as we know it. For example, if water was as viscous as tar life would not exist in its current form or not exist at all. This applies beyond water, so all life forms using the liquid state to function would be affected.”
The implications extend beyond water. Although all known life depends on water, hypothetical organisms elsewhere in the universe might rely on different liquids. The same fundamental physical constraints would still influence how those liquids behave.
Trachenko suggested that the range of constants compatible with cellular life could be surprisingly narrow.
“Any change in fundamental constants including an increase or decrease would be equally bad news for flow and for liquid-based life. We expect the window to be quite narrow: for example, viscosity of our blood would become too thick or too thin for body functioning with only a few per cent change of some fundamental constants such as the Planck constant or electron charge.”
