8 LIFE: ITS ORIGIN AND NATURE 
enee so far as its physical manifestation is con¬ 
cerned. The period, however, between these 
two extremes is ot course represented by many 
hundreds of millions of years. 
Newer researches have also proved that all 
matter, organic and inorganic, is composed of 
the same chemical elements, and that these ele¬ 
ments, in turn, are composed of atoms, which 
are in turn constituted of electrons. Each atom 
represents a miniature solar system, in which 
the negative “electrons” revolve in special orbits 
about the central “protons,” or positive electric 
charges. An electrical theory of matter has 
thus been deduced, which is applicable alike to 
living and non-living bodies. Living bodies are 
merely complex groups of molecules which, in 
turn, are combinations of atoms, which in turn 
are composed of electrons, etc. On this view, 
there is and can be no difference, ultimately, 
between living and so-called “dead” matter. 
Nevertheless, there is a great difference, for 
living matter embodies or expresses life, while 
dead matter does not. What is this “life?” 
What is the nature of the difference between 
living and non-living matter? That is one of 
the most fundamental and interesting problems 
of modern science, and the remainder of this 
little book will be devoted to an attempt to an¬ 
swer this question, as well as to portray some 
of the manifestations or evidences of this hidden 
and invisible life principle or energy. 
