Water, the Wonderfluid

Abstract

Abstract Where we discuss the astonishing properties of water, justly called the fluid of life, which prove crucial to life on our planet across scales, from the oceans down inside our cells. Water matters to the point that every other substance can be classified based on its hydropathy, i.e. depending on whether they “like” water (Hydrophilic) or don’t (Hydrophobic), salt and sugar being prime examples of the former while oil a champion of the latter. Hydropathy provides a formidable organising principle for most fundamental biological processes, such as protein folding, as well as for the emergence of supramolecular structures.