Evolution Quote by Siddhartha Mukherjee
““It is the form of hemoglobin, then, that permits its function. The physical structure of the molecule enables its chemical nature, the chemical nature enables its physiological function, and its physiology ultimately permits is biological activity. The complex workings of living beings can be perceived in terms of these layers: physics enabling chemistry, and chemistry enabling physiology. To Schrodinger's "What is life?" a biochemist might answer, "If not chemicals." And what are chemicals- a biophysicist might add-if not molecules of matter? This description of physiology-as the exquisite matching of form and function, down to the molecular level-dates back to Aristotle. For Aristotle, living organisms were nothing more than exquisite assemblages of machines.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Gene: An Intimate History, Siddhartha Mukherjee, 2016
Describes how hierarchical layers—physics, chemistry, physiology—shape living systems, echoing Aristotle’s view of organisms as intricate machines.
In simple terms: Living systems arise from layered physical to biological structures.
Key Takeaway
Recognize the layered nature of life.
Themes
science
philosophy
biology
Mood
analytical
thoughtful
Type
scientific
educational
When to use this quote
- research design
- medical education
- bioengineering
- philosophical debate
Key Concepts
Hierarchy
form-function relationship
Questions to Reflect On
- What layer most influences health?
- How does form dictate function?
A Different Perspective
Complexity may be oversimplified by reductionism.
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
