This highly unusual book began as a serious inquiry into Schrodinger‎'‎s question‎,‎ ‎"‎What is life‎?‎‎"‎‎,‎ and as a celebration of life itself‎.‎ It takes the reader on a voyage of discovery through many areas of contemporary physics‎,‎ from non‎-equilibrium thermodynamics and quantum optics to liquid crystals and fractals‎,‎ all necessary for illuminating the problem of life‎.‎ In the process‎,‎ the reader is treated to a rare and exquisite view of the organism‎,‎ gaining novel insights not only into the physics‎,‎ but also into ‎"‎the poetry and meaning of being alive‎.‎‎"‎This much‎-enlarged third edition includes new findings on the central role of biological water in organizing living processes‎;‎ it also completes the author‎'‎s novel theory of the organism and its applications in ecology‎,‎ physiology and brain science‎.‎