ENGRD 2520

The Physics of Life

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2020-2021.

Introduces the physics of biological macromolecules (e.g., proteins, DNA, RNA) to students of the physical sciences or engineering who have little or no background in biology. The macromolecules are studied from three perspectives. First, the biological role or function of each class of macromolecules is considered. Second, a quantitative description of the physical interactions that determine the behavior of biomolecular systems. An introduction is provided to probability and statistical methods used to describe the behavior of biological systems. Finally, techniques that are commonly used to probe these systems, with an emphasis on biotechnology applications, are discussed.

When Offered Spring.

Prerequisites/Corequisites Prerequisite: MATH 1920, CHEM 2070 or CHEM 2090. Corequisite: PHYS 2213.

• An introductory-level understanding of molecular biology.
• An understanding of the importance of basic physics, math and chemistry concepts to molecular biology.
• An understanding of the importance of physics/math/engineering in developing techniques to probe biological systems.

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