human physio breakdown

John K Clark (johnkc@well.com)
Wed, 1 Apr 1998 07:53:27 -0800 (PST)


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>jeff@ultraviolet.com
>I suppose no one had a clue about the previous question regarding
>the breakdown of the human body into constituent parts??

Nearly 99% of all the matter in all life, human or otherwise, is made of
just 4 different types of atoms, 4 different building blocks.
61% of the atoms in life are hydrogen, 27% are oxygen, 8% are carbon, and
2.5% are nitrogen. The other elements (about a dozen) involved in life are
found in trace amounts.

It's interesting that there is not a clear relationship between the amount of
elements in the earth's crust and it's use in life. 28% of the earth is made
of silicon yet it plays at best a minor role in life. 4.5% is aluminum, the
most common of all metals, but it's a poison and to my knowledge not used by
life at all.

John K Clark johnkc@well.com

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