Study Ties 3 Fundamental Constants to Life-Sustaining Liquid Flow
Updated
Updated · ScienceDaily · Oct 11
Study Ties 3 Fundamental Constants to Life-Sustaining Liquid Flow
1 articles · Updated · ScienceDaily · Oct 11
Summary
A Science Advances analysis by Kostya Trachenko argues that life depends not just on chemistry but on fundamental constants keeping liquid viscosity and diffusion within a narrow, bio-friendly range.
A few per cent shift in constants such as the Planck constant or electron charge could make water, blood and other life-supporting liquids too thick or too thin for cellular transport and reactions.
The work suggests a universe could still form stars, planets, carbon and oxygen, yet remain inhospitable because its liquids would not flow well enough for cells to function.
A 2025 follow-up extended the idea to blood, finding its complex viscosity still sits surprisingly close to a theoretical value linked to basic physical constants.
The result adds a new fine-tuning constraint on why the laws of physics appear suited to life, though the limits come from theoretical models rather than experiments.