| Description |
1 online resource (ix, 247 pages) : illustrations (some color) |
| Contents |
Image and mirror image in molecules -- The violation of parity -- Light, magnetism, and chirality -- The PT triangle -- Journey into outer space -- Return to Earth -- Chirality at the nano- and micrometer scale -- Chiral models -- Pathways to homochirality -- Prebiotic evolution and beyond |
| Summary |
Until half a century ago, it was assumed that the forces of nature were symmetric and that they did not distinguish between right and left, between image and mirror image. The discovery of the violation of parity in 1956 was more than a sensation, for some it was a shock. It implied that the universe displays handedness, or chirality, and that it is fundamentally asymmetric. Remarkably, a most striking asymmetry is encountered in the realm of biology. Living organisms contain proteins built almost exclusively from L-amino acids, and nucleic acids derived from D-sugars only. Yet a mirror-image |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index |
| Notes |
Print version record |
| Subject |
Chirality
|
|
Asymmetry (Chemistry)
|
| Form |
Electronic book
|
| ISBN |
9783906390598 |
|
3906390594 |
|
9783906390604 |
|
3906390608 |
|
1281842818 |
|
9781281842817 |
|
