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Addy Pross What Is Life Essay

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I had not considered the bridge between biology and chemistry until I was fortunate enough to visit a Master Class on Biochemistry and Genetics. I attended a biochemistry lecture revealed the mechanisms and structure of mitochondria and how they are able to synthesise ATP. Learning about cell biology on such a molecular level was so fascinating to me, that I then decided I wanted to do further study in biological and medicinal chemistry. After developing my interest from this master class, I was eager to learn more about the chemistry behind biological processes. This led me to read Addy Pross’ ‘What is Life? How Chemistry becomes Biology’. One of my favourite chapters within this was entitled: ‘Stability and Instability’ and talks about the Second Law of Thermodynamics and how this relates to biological processes. Reading about how our cells go through dynamic stability over time highlights how different living matter is to non-living matter. Even though living systems are made up of the same molecules as non-living ones, understanding life is a debate still not resolved, and something I would like to study in greater detail. Continuing my interest in how living matter derived from non living matter, I watched Martin Hanczyc’s TED video: ‘The Line between Life and Non- Life’. …show more content…

One of the challenges I set myself this year was to participate in the Cambridge Chemistry Challenge for Lower Sixth. I thoroughly enjoyed this paper and liked the way it featured ‘pure’ chemistry beyond the narrow scope of A-Level syllabuses. The complicated aspects of organic chemistry within this were of particular interest to me and I favoured the questions on the synthesis of drugs. I was rewarded for my achievement in this challenge with a Copper Award and being just one mark away from a Silver Award places me near the top quarter of candidates in this rigorous

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