From: Doerr, Timothy (NIH/NLM/NCBI) [E]
Sent: Tuesday, January 27, 2009 10:19 AM
To: NLM/NCBI List ncbi-seminar
Subject: Reminder of CBB seminar Tue Jan 27 by Timothy Doerr (fwd)




Timothy Doerr

CBB Seminar

Tuesday, January 27, 2009 at 1100

Bldg 38A, B2 Library

Abstract:

Electrostatic forces are a critical effect in the functioning of cells, which are filled with charged molecules in a high dielectric constant solvent (water).
I discuss an exact method for calculating the electrostatic forces for systems with piecewise constant linear dielectric properties.
Such systems (systems of charged spheres, in particular) are common in applications such as molecular dynamics simulations.
I then discuss an exact method for calculating the electrostatic forces in the case of arbitrary spatial variation of the dielectric properties, 
and which can therefore shed light on issues such as hydration phenomena.
A general, and apparently unnoticed, feature of systems of charged objects in a high dielectric constant solvent such as water is that there is a 
repulsion as the system rearranges itself so that regions of high electric field move to regions of high dielectric constant.