title: Critical waves and the length problem of biology.
abstract: It is pointed out that the mystery of how biological systems measure their lengths vanishes away if one premises that they have discovered a way to generate linear waves analogous to compressional sound. These can be used to detect length at either large or small scales using echo timing and fringe counting. It is shown that suitable linear chemical potential waves can, in fact, be manufactured by tuning to criticality conventional reaction-diffusion with a small number substance. Min oscillations in Escherichia coli are cited as precedent resonant length measurement using chemical potential waves analogous to laser detection. Mitotic structures in eukaryotes are identified as candidates for such an effect at higher frequency. The engineering principle is shown to be very general and functionally the same as that used by hearing organs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305 rbl@large.stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Robert B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Laughlin
mesh_terms: D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D001698:Biomedical Engineering; D055592:Biophysical Phenomena; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D004058:Diffusion; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000166:cytology*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D015726:Giant Cells / Q000166:cytology; D007834:Lasers; D008954:Models, Biological; D009038:Motion; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology; D009991:Oscillometry; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence; D008941:Spindle Apparatus
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C071525:FtsZ protein, Bacteria; C093548:MinE protein, E coli; D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases; C072069:MinD protein, E coli
keywords: MinDE; growth and form; laser amplifier; mitosis; waves