The Ascent of life

This article presents a study related to quantum matter. Most people take the existence of life for granted, but to a physicist like me it seems astounding. Physicists normally think of matter in terms of inert, clod-like particles jostling each other, so the elaborate organization of the living cell appears little short of miraculous. Evidently, living organisms represent a state of matter in a class apart from the rest. It was an effort that did not get very far, and for nearly half a century the idea remained on the sidelines. But now a handful of scientists are urging another, more careful, look at quantum phenomena in biology.