Living matter and active matter, as a physical system, comprise ensembles of constituents that continuously consume energy to generate mechanical work, drive motion, and maintain structures far from thermodynamic equilibrium. Living matter refers to biological active systems such as cells, tissues, and cytoskeletal networks, where internal biochemical processes power self-propulsion, force generation, and adaptive responses. Active matter generalizes these features to biological and synthetic units (e.g., self-propelled colloids, active nematics) modeled as particles or fields with persistent energy input at the microscale. Both exhibit emergent collective phenomena, including spontaneous flows, pattern formation, phase separation, and anomalous transport, governed by nonequilibrium statistical mechanics and continuum active hydrodynamics.
Snakes may be best known for slithering. But consider that these animals also perform one of the most extreme feats of posture control found in nature: They can stand nearly straight upright on a narrow perch without falling, ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 3, 2026
0
198
Scientists have designed nanoagents that act like smart drug-delivery capsules—carrying an antibiotic deep into bacterial infection sites and releasing it only when activated by gentle ultrasound. Delivering antibiotics locally, ...
Bio & Medicine
Mar 2, 2026
0
86
Researchers in Hong Kong and the UK have revealed how one species of self-propelling microbes can actively change the path of their swimming motions, depending on how much light they receive. Reporting in Physical Review ...
Cyanobacteria are among the most significant life forms in the history of our planet. As one of the first organisms to produce oxygen through photosynthesis, they shaped early Earth and created the atmosphere in which complex ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 27, 2026
0
29
Cells rely on biomolecular condensates to coordinate essential biological processes without surrounding membranes. These droplet-like dynamic assemblies control the way in which DNA is turned into proteins, help clear cellular ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 25, 2026
0
49
With a new mathematical model, a team of biophysicists has revealed fresh insights into how biological tissues are shaped by the active motion of structural imperfections known as "topological defects." Published in Physical ...
Living cells are highly organized, yet they are not assembled using rigid blueprints or by following a predetermined plan. Instead, order emerges on its own from countless interactions between molecules that are constantly ...
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 18, 2026
0
16
A recent study by a team of researchers led by TU Darmstadt has found that tiny amounts of liquid can navigate their way through unknown environments like living cells—without sensors, computers or external control. The tiny ...
General Physics
Feb 3, 2026
0
23
The cells in our bodies move in groups during biological processes such as wound healing and tissue development—but because of resistance, or viscosity, those cells can't just neatly glide past each other.
Molecular & Computational biology
Jan 31, 2026
0
105
The sensory proteins that control the motion of bacteria constantly fluctuate. AMOLF researchers, together with international collaborators from ETH Zurich and University of Utah, found out that these proteins can jointly ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jan 29, 2026
0
66
