Biophysics for Beginners

Biophysics is a new way of looking at living matter. It uses quantitative experimental, theoretical, and computational methods and thus opens a new window for the study and understanding of life processes. This textbook presents a brief introduction to the fundamentals of the subject (molecular cell biology, statistical physics, etc.), followed by in-depth discussions on more advanced biophysical topics, including some of the latest experiments and their theoretical interpretations. The book is unique in that it gives a general introduction to biophysics, while limiting itself to the processes that take place in the cell nucleus and in which biopolymers (DNA, RNA, and proteins) are involved. This allows for a coherent story line that is easy for beginners to follow. At the same time, it enables more depth to be achieved, which makes this book interesting for specialists too. The second edition presents some of the newest developments in the field (e.g., biomolecular condensates, loop extrusion) and a new chapter on computational methods. In addition, the number of exercises has been expanded and now includes many computer exercises specially designed for this textbook.