Jeremy England
Jeremy England is an American physicist who uses statistical physics arguments to explain the spontaneous emergence of life, and consequently, the modern synthesis of evolution.[3][4][5] England terms this process "dissipation-driven adaptation".[6]
Jeremy England | |
---|---|
Born | 1982 |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | |
Known for | Dissipation-driven adaptation hypothesis of abiogenesis |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Biophysics |
Institutions | GlaxoSmithKline |
Thesis | Theory and Simulation of Explicit Solvent Effects on Protein Folding in Vitro and in Vivo (2009) |
Doctoral advisor | Vijay S. Pande[2] |
Website | www |
Early life
England's mother was the daughter of Polish Jewish Holocaust survivors while his father was a non-observant Lutheran.[7] England was born in Boston[8] and raised in a college town in New Hampshire. He was raised Jewish but did not study Judaism until he attended graduate school at Oxford University. He now considers himself an Orthodox Jew.[7]
England earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry from Harvard in 2003. After being awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, he studied at St. John's College, Oxford, from 2003 until 2005. He earned his Ph.D. in physics at Stanford in 2009.[1][9] In 2011, he joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's physics department as an assistant professor.[8] In 2019, he joined GlaxoSmithKline as a senior director in artificial intelligence and machine learning.[10]
Theoretical work
England has developed a hypothesis of the physics of the origins of life, that he calls "dissipation-driven adaptation."[3][5] The hypothesis holds that random groups of molecules can self-organize to more efficiently absorb and dissipate heat from the environment. His hypothesis states that such self-organizing systems are an inherent part of the physical world.[7]
Pulitzer Prize–winning science historian Edward J. Larson said that if England can demonstrate his hypothesis to be true, "he could be the next Darwin."[7]
In popular culture
A fictionalized version of England and his 'dissipation-driven adaptation' theory features in Dan Brown's novel Origin. England, who is an Orthodox Jew and ordained Rabbi,[11] has written that he strongly rejects Brown's depiction of him as being a scientist who is unconcerned with spiritual matters.[12]
Awards
England shared APS 2021 Irwin Oppenheim Award with Sumantra Sarkar.[13] He is also listed in a Forbes "30 under 30" in science.[14][15]
England was selected as Rhodes Scholar in 2003.[16] Also in 2003, the Hertz Foundation awarded England a Hertz Fellowship.[15]
References
- Curriculum Vitae- Jeremy L. England (PDF), EnglandLab.com, retrieved December 17, 2014
- England, Jeremy (2009). Theory and Simulation of Explicit Solvent Effects on Protein Folding in Vitro and in Vivo (PhD thesis). ISBN 978-1243607553.
- Wolchover, Natalie (Jan 28, 2014). "A New Physics Theory of Life". Scientific American. Retrieved Dec 11, 2014.
- Tafarella, Santi (Jan 28, 2014). "Dissipation-Driven Adaptive Organization: Is Jeremy England The Next Charles Darwin?". Prometheus Unbound. Retrieved Dec 11, 2014.
- Jones, Orion (Dec 9, 2014). "MIT Physicist Proposes New "Meaning of Life"". Big Think. Retrieved Dec 11, 2014.
- Perunov, Nikolai; Marsland, Robert; England, Jeremy (2016). "Statistical Physics of Adaptation". Physical Review X. 6 (2): 021036. arXiv:1412.1875. Bibcode:2016PhRvX...6b1036P. doi:10.1103/PhysRevX.6.021036. S2CID 15928632.
- Meet the Orthodox Jewish physicist rethinking the origins of life" by Simona Weinglass, The Times of Israel, October 29, 2015.
- Faculty biography of Jeremy England Archived 2019-04-29 at the Wayback Machine, MIT Dept. of Physics, accessed Jan. 9, 2015.
- England, Jeremy. "Curriculum Vitae". englandlab. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- "GlaxoSmithKline recruits a new coach and top player for their AI/ML team out of Genentech and MIT". San Francisco Biotechnology Network News. July 11, 2019. Archived from the original on July 28, 2019. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
- "Judaism, Physics and Biology on the Origins of Life: A Conversation with Dr. Jeremy England". Sinai and Synapses. 16 December 2020. Retrieved 2022-10-17.
- England, Jeremy (2017-10-12). "Dan Brown Can't Cite Me to Disprove God". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-10-17.
- "Irwin Oppenheim Award". American Physical Society. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
- "Jeremy England". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-01-29.[Forbes]
- "Jeremy England - Fanny and John Hertz Foundation". Hertz Foundation. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
- Ken Gewertz (2002-12-12). "Five Harvard students selected as 2003 Rhodes Scholars".
^ Forbes.com seems to have lost most of the content on his profile and lists a broken link to the 2012 30-under-30 in Science. The Hertz Foundation profile mentions the 2018 Forbes 30-under-30. However, neither the 2012 nor the 2018 official listing pages on Forbes.com list England.
Further reading
- Wolchover, Natalie (July 26, 2017). "First Support for a Physics Theory of Life". Quanta Magazine. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- Vildósola Reyes, Luis (November 1, 2003). "MODELO PARA VALORAR LA ATRIBUCIÓN DE SUSTENTABILIDAD". Repositorio UABC. Retrieved November 1, 2003.
External links
- Lab website
- Jeremy England discusses his theory of pre-biological evolution and the emergence of complexity in non-living systems - Interview on the 7th Avenue Project radio show
- What is life: lecture by Jeremy England on 9 September 2014 at the Karolinska Institutet