Organization of matter

Just as artificial life seeks to aii.swer the question of whether life is really an emergent property of the organization of matter and is not just some unique embodiment of its substance, so too it might be said that the goal of finite physics is to see whether physics - what we call reality - is fundamentally a property of the organization of information rather than a unique embodiment of the interaction... 

Ihlein, G. et al., Ordered porous materials as media for the organization of matter on the nanoscale, Appl. Organometallic Chem., 12, 305, 1998. 

Eigen, M. (1971). Self-organization of matter and the evolution of biological macromolecules. Naturwissenschaften, 58, 465-523. 

Introduced in the 1980s and now very popular, this technique uses as the solvent liquid carbon dioxide under conditions described as supercritical. In the normal solvent extraction technique, an organic solvent is used that is liquid at room temperature. By application of pressure to the extraction equipment, solvents that are normally gases at room temperature can be compressed and liquiefied (see Organization of matter in Ch. 1). Carbon dioxide, when pressurized in this way, becomes a supercritical fluid at above 33 °C. In the supercritical state it is too hot to be a conventional liquid and too pressurized to be a conventional gas. In this state it has excellent solvent properties for organic molecules. Once the extraction is complete, the pressure can be released and carbon dioxide becomes a gas again. 

Supramolecular chemistry has thus emphasized the perception of chemistry as the science of informed matter, with the aim of gaining progressive control over the organization of matter, over its spatial (structural) and temporal (dynamical) features. It has led to the ever clearer perception, deeper analysis, and more deliberate application of information features in the elaboration and transformation of matter, tracing the path from merely condensed matter to more and more highly organized matter, towards systems of increasing complexity. 

Eigen has also been interested in the chemical basis of the origin of life, which seems to be a very different question from his previous studies, in reality it is not. Two of his papers were named Citation Classics by Current Contents. One paper was Proton-transfer, acid-base catalysis, and enzymatic hydrolysis. Part I elementary processes. An ew. Chem. 1963, 75, 489 Int. Ed. En l. 1964, 5, 1-19. It was one of the most cited papers in the field. The German and the English versions have been cited more than 285 and 965 times, respectively, by 1990. Then Eigen worked on evolution and published another paper, Self-organization of matter and the evolution of biological macromolecules. Naturwissenschafien 1971, 58, 465-523. This paper was the most cited paper in that journal in over 490 publications by 1990. 

Take a moment to recall what you have learned about the organization of matter, using Figure 3-17 as a guide. You know that matter is classified as pure substances and mixtures. As you learned in the previous section, mixtures can be homogeneous or heterogeneous. You also know that elements are pure substances that cannot be separated into simpler substances. There is yet another classification of pure substances—compounds. A compound is a combination of two or more different elements that are combined chemically. Most of the substances that you are familiar with and, in fact, much of the matter of the universe are compounds. Water, table salt, table sugar, and aspirin are examples of common compounds. 

Nanotechnology is the term generaly used to describe the creation and exploitation of materials with at least one dimension in the nanometer range (1-1000 nm). These include nanocrystals and clusters (quantum dots), nanowires, nanotubes, thin films and superlattices (3-Dimensional structures) [1,2]. Usually, nanostmctures have more reactive surfaces and exhibit new functions for the same chemical composition. Investigations of organization of matter at the nano-level are under way in many chemical systems with present and potential applications in nanotechnology. Recently, nanoscale stmctures were reported for the first time for actinide-containing compounds as well [3-6]. 

Oro J. Lazcano, A. In Prebiological Self Organization of Matter, Ponnamperuma, C. Erich, F. 

The flux of energy into the organization of matter appears virtually or hardly possible without compartments. Thus, the formation of primitive membranes was the decisive step to develop protocells, since a membrane warrants a safe protection... 

Eigen M (1971) Molekulare Selbstorganisation und Evolution (Self Organization of Matter and the Evolution of Biological Macromolecules). Naturwissen-schaften 58 465-523... 

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