Mathematics of Life

Ian Stewart argues that mathematics constitutes the next major revolution in biology, following the microscope, classification systems, and DNA sequencing. He examines how differential equations model the firing of neurons and how group theory explains the symmetry of virus shells. The text details the use of knot theory to understand how DNA uncoils and uses game theory to analyze evolutionary strategies. By moving beyond descriptive biology, Stewart demonstrates how topological patterns and fluid dynamics dictate the physical forms of developing embryos and the locomotion of animals.

This book is intended for students and general science enthusiasts who want to see how abstract formulas apply to the organic world. Readers gain a technical understanding of how geometry governs bone structure and how probability helps map the human genome. It provides a toolkit for viewing nature as a series of solved and unsolved equations rather than just a collection of various species. Those who finish the text will recognize the numerical logic behind leaf arrangements and the rhythmic oscillations of biological clocks.