Electricity and Magnetism in Biological Systems

On the molecular biological level the only significant forces are electromagnetic, so that ultimately all living processes must be understood in terms of electromagnetic fields and forces. The first half of the present book deals with the theory of electromagnetism using a descriptive and geometrical approach suited to students of biology, chemistry, and biochemistry, including biologically relevant examples where possible. The second half contains biological topics which can serve as applications of the theory for students of chemistry or biology, or as an introduction to biology for students trained in the physical sciences who wish to migrate to biology. Topics include the properties of water and ions in bulk solution and in narrow pores, the Debye Layer, possible mechanisms for a magnetic animal compass, an electrostatic model of a proton/ion counterport, and the semi-classical theory of nuclear magnetic resonance.

"Edmonds (The Clarendon Laboratory, U. of Oxford) offers this textbook to help biologists master the theory of electro-magnetic forces. Ten chapters explain the basic theory in a manner accessible to non-physics students, using an approach more descriptive and less dependent on algebraic manipulation than that of most physics textbooks. Essential mathematical concepts are explained for readers lacking a strong mathematical background. Six additional chapters demonstrate the application of the theory for chemistry and biology students. Topics include the properties of water and ions in bulk solution and in narrow pores, the Debye layer, possible mechanisms for a magnetic animal compass, an electrostatic model of a proton/ion counterport, and the semi-classical theory of nuclear magnetic resonance."--SciTech Book News

CONTENTS

Part I: The basic theory
1. Electrostatic fields and voltage
2. How conductors shape an electric field
3. Ionic conductors
4. Properties of the electric dipole and Gauss's Law when dielectrics are present
5. The calculation of electric fields and voltages in the presence of dielectrics
6. Static magnetic fields
7. The generation of magnetic fields
8. Magnetic polarization of material
9. Induced electric and magnetic fields
10. The motion of a charged particle in electric and magnetic fields
Part II: Applications
11. Ions in aqueous solution and the ionization of acids and bases
12. The Debye Layer
13. The behaviour of ions in narrow pores
14. Possible mechanisms for a magnetic animal compass
15.  An electrostatic model of a proton/ion or an ion/ion coport or counterport
16.  An introduction to the classical theory of pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance
Appendix 1: Mathematics
Appendix 2: The Boltzmann Distribution
Appendix 3: An introduction to thermodynamics and the chemical potential
Appendix 4: Hints for the solutions and numerical answers to the problems