title: Evolution as a collective phenomenon.
abstract: The quantum mechanical description of biosystems, which emphasise their dielectric properties and the presence of an uncorrelated condensate of phonons, (in analogy with Bose-Einstein condensation), is extended to a description of biosystems, in which the condensed phonons show anomalous averages, (in analogy with superconductivity). The theory is used to show that a quantum ultraviolet defence mechanism may have been present at the origin of chemical evolution, removing a difficulty in the standard scenario. Suggestions are made as to how to proceed experimentally to show the existence of a correlated phonon condensate.
mesh_terms: D005075:Biological Evolution; D001704:Biopolymers; D009696:Nucleic Acids; D055585:Physical Phenomena; D010825:Physics; D011789:Quantum Theory; D013696:Temperature; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays; D014732:Vibration
chemical_list: D001704:Biopolymers; D009696:Nucleic Acids